She's Everything
by Danny'sGirlSG1
Summary: She's everything he ever wanted and everything he needs. DV - Written for mission-insane on LJ. Part 4 now posted, thus completing this series.
1. Part 1

**Title:** She's Everything  
**Author:** Pip (dannysgirlsg1)  
**Summary:** She's everything he ever wanted and everything he needs.  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Spoilers/Warnings:** Various different ships mentioned (Sam/insert whoever you want here, and Cam/Carolyn in later parts). Also, references to Momento Mori, Politics, and The Fifth Man.  
**A/N:** Written for mission-insane, table 06 - 'Inspired by' Song, prompt 06: 'She's Everything' by Brad Paisley. I've broken the song up into four seperare parts (since it consists of three verses and the chorus), and have broken each individual line down into their own seperate vignettes. They can all easily be read as seperate entities. Part 1 below consists of the entire first verse.

--

**She's Everything, P.1**

_**She's a yellow pair of running shoes**_

He was seated on the porch, busy tying the laces of his well worn in sneakers, when something yellow filled the edge of his vision just to the left. Daniel's fingers stilled mid-tie and he slowly shifted his attention to the brightness at his side. Blue eyes blinked several times at the sight of a set of running shoes, practically glowing in the early morning light.

Ever so slowly, Daniel's gaze drifted up the slender, smooth legs, past the incredibly short shorts and tight sports bra to the curious smile and shining eyes of Vala Mal Doran. She had her hands on her hips and held tilted to the side a fraction.

"Yes, darling?" There was a twinkle in her eyes that let him know she already knew.

Still he bit because he couldn't stop himself. "Those shoes are a bit…_loud_, don't you think?"

Vala let out a huff of air through her nose and blinked dramatically at him. "Now Daniel, how do you expect sneakers to make any kind of noise at all?"

"Oh, you know what I mean…" He sighed, returning his focus to finish tying his shoes.

"You mean, they stand out spectacularly," She trotted down the porch steps and bounced from foot to foot in place on the walk a few steps away. "Shining bright and pretty, just like a gorgeous woman you know?"

Daniel laughed slightly and pushed himself up. He watched her bouncing in place, switching back and forth between her smiling face and almost-neon shoes. "Well, now I know I'll never lose you."

She stopped bouncing. "You're sure about that?"

Laughing again, Daniel nodded. "Positive. Those shoes are so distracting, how could I not see them?"

"I know they're distracting…" Vala answered, all knowingly. While Daniel's attention was still on her feet, she made a dash up the walk, down the driveway, and stopped on the sidewalk in front of the house next door. Jogging in place, she turned and smiled impishly towards Daniel's mildly surprised expression.

"That's why I bought them!" She shouted back cheerfully before taking off down the sidewalk.

Still on the porch, Daniel let a disbelieving little laugh out into the morning air. "Damn her." He grumbled good-naturedly as he sprinted off the porch after her. There was no way he was gonna let her little yellow shoes help her outrun him.

_**A holey pair of jeans**_

There were a lot of things Daniel liked about on-Earth digs.

There was the feeling of just knowing he was home and that he didn't have to worry about being chased down by aliens or space bears. Knowing the weather patterns for an area was easier on Earth then off world, and easier to prepare accordingly.

Sure, it was hard to keep the curious at bay, but that was part of the appeal to him. Never on a dig before he'd joined the SGC had he felt as important as he did when he found himself in some accidentally unearthed temple that turned out to be Goa'uld. Daniel felt important – that he was the head archaeologist on a groundbreaking, yet extremely classified, dig site did wonders for his long-bruised ego.

But the best thing, he had decided, about digs on Earth was the clothing he got to wear. No BDUs, though he didn't have a problem with them when on base or off world. He got to wear tattered over shirts, and comfortable jeans.

More importantly, though, was Vala in _those_ jeans. Her 'only good pair for digging', or so she had informed him in their rush to pack and get to the recently unearthed site. Not that he was complaining.

Because every time he looked over at her bent down next to him, he'd see that slice of tan skin just under her ass poking through the tattered, holier than a priest, jeans. And every time she'd catch his looks, Vala would wink a world of treasures that only the privacy of their tent later that night would reveal.

Oh yes – Daniel really liked his on-Earth digs.

_**She looks great in cheap sunglasses**_

He'd lost her somewhere between the bags and the shoes, and couldn't call her because she'd managed to snag his cell phone before disappearing. It always happened any time Daniel took her anywhere. Sometimes he wondered why he took her anywhere at all. It did nothing to calm his nerves to have her away from him in a very public place where any person could be a bad guy in disguise.

He knew she could handle herself, but ever since she'd been kidnapped by the Trust, Daniel really hated when she wandered away. It's not like he could stop her though – she was always gone before he could turn around and notice.

And despite his fears, she always caught up with him again in some other part of the store. It was that knowledge he held onto when she pulled stunts like this. That she would come back to him – always.

This time was no exception. He was in the automotive department, picking up some things Sam had asked for, when a pair of familiar arms wrapped around his waist from behind. The heat of her at his back eased the knots in his stomach away, and her sultry voice relaxed his tense muscles.

"Open it." Vala instructed, words whispered right against his left ear as she held up his cell phone.

Daniel did as instructed, taking the device from her hand and opening it up. He let out a laugh loud enough to make the older woman at the end of the aisle jump in surprise. The picture now set as his background was one of Vala's dramatic kissy faces, though have her face was hidden behind a gaudy pair of white-rimmed sunglasses. He could just make out her eyes behind the shadowy lenses.

"You like?" She asked and Daniel turned to come face to face with the same cheap shades.

He shook his head and leaned in to place a very chaste kiss to her lips. "I love."

Vala beamed and kissed his nose. Then she wrapped one of her arms around one of his, and let him get back to shopping. When they'd finished, and were checking out, Vala didn't ask for him to buy the sunglasses, and Daniel didn't protest when she simply placed the price tag in the cashier's hand.

She wore them out of the store proudly, not even caring they'd only cost Daniel three dollars.

_**She looks great in anything**_

Daniel had realized that when Vala left the SGC in a bad mood, whether it was on a mission or off for the privacy of his home, things would get sticky.

Or in this case, muddy.

"It's not funny." She huffed at him, crossing her arms and stamping her foot. A large glop of mud falling from its precarious perch above her forehead right down her face only made him laugh harder. "Daniel!"

The tearful whine had him trudging forward in the knee-high sludge. He pulled his mud-covered glasses from his face, for he'd gone tumbling down the slippery incline just the same as her, and tried to control his laughter. Daniel reached up his free hand to brush some of her hair, heavy with mud, from her face.

Vala batted his hand away. "Don't even."

"Vala, come on…" Daniel smiled, taking a difficult step closer to her. "You can't blame me for laughing – it _was_ funny."

Her heated grey glare, brighter against her dirty face, said otherwise. "Yes I can, and no it wasn't. We could've gotten hurt or landed in some horrible, inescapable pit and then would've had to wait days for a rescue team to get us out."

Daniel placed his glasses in a pocket on his tac vest, then gave her a patient stare. "But we didn't get hurt, or land in an inescapable pit. We landed in a mud-pit and got a little dirty."

"Little, Daniel?" Vala laughed angrily. "We're covered in mud." She looked down, dropping her arms and let out an overdramatic sigh. "I look terrible, I just know it."

Reaching up, Daniel was pleased when she didn't smack his hand away this time. Rubbing a thumb over her cheek, making as semi-clean smudge but earning him her watery gaze, he gave her a sweet smile. "You look adorable."

She sighed and gave him a disbelieving look. "You're just saying that to make me feel better."

"Is it working?" He asked on a whisper, leaning in a little.

A hard-fought smile came to her. "Maybe."

"Good…" Daniel kissed her forehead, not minding the mud in his mouth for there was already a good amount in it anyway, then began to trudge towards the incline that they'd come tumbling down. "You were saying you needed a good mud bath anyway."

The answer he got in return was about a pound of mud impacting with the back of his head. Daniel began to turn slowly, but barely got facing her direction before a very Vala-shaped mud person tackled him to the ground.

"I'll give you a mud bath." She growled playfully, picking up more dirt and rubbing it into his face.

Daniel grabbed her wrists as she made to grab more mud and flipped her over. He pinned her down into the slush, enjoying her squeal of playful protest. It was hard to keep a firm hold on each other, they were both so slippery, that by the time the rest of the team had managed to maneuver down to the pit, the couple was about ten pounds heavier with mud.

Daniel would never forget the bright white smile shining through tons of brown muck when Mitchell had said Vala was the prettiest mud creature he'd ever seen, even if it meant he'd have to endure mud wrestling jokes for several years to come.

_**She's: "I want a piece of chocolate."**_

It was turning into months, and Daniel was feeling neglected. After so many years of having no woman at his side, he'd come to appreciate everything that was his Vala. The smell of her hair, green tea and jasmine scented. The feel of her skin against his, whether it was in the shower, in the midst of love-making, or just some good cuddling that brought them together. The fire of her lips touching his was an inferno he wanted to engulf him completely.

But Sam makes Vala her maid of honor, and Daniel lands back where he started. No Vala to snuggle up against because she was always at Sam's, doing something or other for the wedding. No intimate shower time, no any time. Vala was committed to her best girlfriend and not her lover, and Daniel had to admit he was jealous.

So feeling jealous and neglected, Daniel knew he needed to play dirty if he wanted to have her front and center.

Waltzing into the bedroom, he dangled a bag of something delicious at his side as he passed her on the floor. She was bent over about a dozen thrown-open bridal magazines; her legs 

crossed Indian-style. Vala was busy writing hasty notes on a yellow legal pad, but she wasn't too oblivious to her surroundings to not notice him go past her – or the delightful smell that went with him.

Daniel flopped onto the bed; legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles. He dropped the bag in his hand onto his stomach, dug into it and pulled out a very tasty prize. Lifting it towards the ceiling, he gazed at it thoughtfully against the harsh backdrop of the fan light.

Then, without a sound, he popped the candy in his mouth.

"What's that?" A sweet and curious voice asked from the floor as Daniel munched on the treat.

Daniel shifted a little. "Nothing." He mumbled around the food.

There was the sound of paper rustling, then the bed dipped a bit as Vala crawled up on the end. "That doesn't sound like nothing." Her tone had gone very predatory.

Shrugging, Daniel smiled as he slowly tried to move the bag from his stomach to under the pillow beneath his head.

"Daniel, I want a piece of chocolate." Vala said in a demanding, low tone that was filled with mischief and playfulness as she crawled up the bed.

Daniel shook his head. He snaked another piece out of the bag, now secure beneath the pillow, and popped it in his mouth. "No."

Lifting her left leg over him and straddling his body, Vala lowered herself onto his stomach. She splayed her hands out over his chest, her fingers working beneath the undone button down he was wearing. "I want a piece of chocolate."

Shaking his head again, Daniel's smile went as wide as it could without him actually showing teeth as Vala pressed the upper part of her body against his. Her lips hovered inches from his.

"Fine…" She whispered. "I'll just take it then."

He happily took the blazing kiss Vala placed to his lips, letting her pirating tongue pillage the chocolate taste from his mouth. Daniel didn't miss, however, one of her hands coming up and sneaking under the pillow. He allowed her a moment of triumph.

Vala pulled her mouth away and sat back up. "Ah ha!" She shouted, holding the chocolate out for him to see. Daniel just raised an eyebrow. He waited until she had brought the candy to her lips, eyes closing in a moment of ecstasy. Reaching his hands up, he gripped her waist and flipped her onto her back.

She laughed, dropping the rest of the chocolate in her mouth. As she chewed, eyes still closed, the metallic click and the warmth around her wrist caught her attention. Grey eyes flew open and she looked up to see her wrist cuffed to the bed.

"Now you can have more…" Daniel said casually. Vala watched him pull the bag of chocolates out and dangle it before her eyes. "When I say."

Giving him a naughty stare, Vala pouted her lips seductively. "I'm not gonna be a good girl."

Daniel licked his lips, then that rare mischievous smile graced his handsome face. "I know." He extracted another piece of candy from the bag and brought it close to her lips, even as his own lips dove down to place suggestive kisses to the inside of her thigh.

She arched a little at the sensation, digging her teeth into the offered chocolate.

It would be several days later when Vala would make Daniel explain to Sam why they were a little behind in the wedding schedule.

"_**Take me to a movie"**_

"What are you doing, darling?" Vala asked as she breezed into the room, letting him know he had better pack it in because he wouldn't be doing it for much longer. Unless _she_ was in a working mood, no work could ever be done when Vala Mal Doran was in the room.

Daniel scratched at his chin with the hand holding his pencil. "I'm working."

"Oh…" She leaned on her elbows against the workbench next to him. "Why?"

He never brought his attention up to her from the book he was perusing for references. "Because it's what I get paid to do…" Slowly blue eyes looked into grey. "You like to spend my money?"

Vala grinned and nodded. "Of course I do, Daniel!"

"Well I have to work to earn it." He said as he returned his attention to said work.

"Yes, but you don't have to work _all_ the time." She reached her finger out to shift the book closer to her. Without looking up, Daniel grabbed it and put her finger right in front of her. "I don't."

Taking a couple notes, Daniel continued in his distracted tone. "So I'm noticing."

Vala let out a loud sigh and climbed onto the workbench. She flopped back onto the surface, her feet beating against the side. "Let's do something, Daniel."

He did his hardest not to give in to her bored tone. "I'm working, Vala."

"Please Daniel?" She whined, flipping over and propping her head on her hands.

"Working." Daniel reiterated the point, writing down a few more notes. When his gaze returned to the book, he found a hand was now covering the majority of it.

"Daniel…" There it was – that _tone_ she used that could melt all of his resolve. Hesitantly, Daniel brought his blue eyes up to look into hers. "Take me to a movie."

And that was it. Sounded like it was asked, but was really an order that he couldn't disobey. With a sigh, Daniel moved her hand and flipped the book closed. He dropped the pencil and gave her a look as she bounded off the table and threw her arms around his neck.

"Thank you." She said simply.

"Yeah…" Daniel answered with a roll of his eyes. Pulling her arms down, he hooked one through his and escorted her out of his office. He made sure to turn the light off and close the door behind them. There would be no more work for him that day – he'd known it the moment she walked in.

_**She's: "I can't find a thing to wear"**_

Things were up. That was Daniel's first thought as he entered the room and found every possible surface covered in clothing. Dresses, jeans, shirts of varying types – strewn everywhere and every which way that was imaginable. How one pair of jeans had managed to land in the bathtub in the joining bathroom, he wasn't really sure.

"Hunny, you okay?" He ventured timidly, taking a dangerous step towards the closest. If it was possible, more clothes were spewing out from the gaping mouth. Daniel didn't even want to begin to know how she managed to get all of her wardrobe into the tiny space.

"Do I look okay?" Vala snapped back as soon as her eyes landed on him. She swept one empty hand up and down her body, clad only in a black bra, panties, and black open-toed heels.

Daniel stood looking like a guppy, mouth opening and closing for a few moments. He knew whatever he was gonna say would be wrong, so the smart thing to do was probably say nothing. But he wasn't always in control of his mouth sometimes.

"You look – not ready."

If looks could kill…

"Of course I'm not ready!" She barked, throwing the handful of clothes on hangars in her right hand directly at him. "I'll never be ready! I look horrible in everything I wear…" Vala pointed a finger at him as he opened his mouth to protest, the tossed clothes hanging in his hands. "_Don't_ tell me anything different, or I swear to any god I know I'll beat you up like I did on that damn ship!"

Dropping the clothes and holding up his hands, Daniel shook his head. This time he had the smarts to not say a word.

Vala's face fell after a moment and tears welled in her eyes. "I can't find a thing to wear, Daniel. All those prissy government wives are gonna look fabulous, and I'm gonna look like polished up space trash."

Seeing his opportunity, Daniel stepped over mounds of clothes to stand before her. Placing gentle hands over her chilled arms, he gave her his sincerest look. "Then we won't go."

Obviously that wasn't what she was expecting. "What?"

"Well, if you can't find a thing to wear and I can't convince you that you look a million times better than those old trophy wives…" Daniel smiled his sweetest smile. "Then we won't 

bother going." He brought one of his hands down to fiddle in the side of her panties. "I know, for a _fact_, that you don't need any clothes if we're gonna stay here."

Even though his words and actions were more than suggestive, Daniel could tell he'd done right by Vala. He could tell in the way her body relaxed beneath his touch and the little breath she let out in relief.

And even when he knew he would catch hell for missing the banquet, Daniel didn't mind. He would rather take the verbal wrath of a few disgruntled politicians over the wrath of a woman who could kick his ass three ways from Sunday.

_**Now and then she's moody**_

Normally, Vala was the picture of happiness. Always bubbly and friendly, bouncing down the hallways and annoying the crap out of almost everyone. But there were days, every now and then, when she would get in a mood. Those were the days when most people tended to avoid her, or at the least, not upset her.

Daniel wasn't most people.

The others thought he was crazy for taking her low blows and compromising remarks after he'd not heeded the warnings to stay away. It couldn't be healthy for the relationship to have one storm off in a fit of anger, and have the other left sitting at the commissary table, blushing with embarrassment of a nasty kind.

But what the others never knew was that her anger only lasted so long. It would quickly drain away, leaving guilt, fear, and grief that Vala never dealt with in its wake.

They never saw her, hours later, standing timidly in his office doorway. They never heard the way she called him, the 'Daniel' so delicate and burdened, or his calm 'yes?' in response to his name.

They never knew she would walk up to him at his desk, wringing her hands in an endless cycle, and apologize in such a way…

"I'm sorry." She would whispered, trying to look like it had been all a playful game. But the way her face always crumbled into turmoil would say otherwise.

And they never knew he would stand then, gather her in his arms and let her know he wasn't gonna let a bad day keep them apart for long.

She never cried, and he never asked her if she wanted to talk about it. Bad days were warranted – even he had them from time to time. People might have thought it safe to avoid her when she was moody, but at the end of the day, only Daniel was the one who was human enough to understand. And only Daniel was the one who curled up with her in bed those nights.

_**She's a Saturn with a sunroof with her dark hair a-blowing**_

"I can't believe I'm doing this!" Daniel laughed to the wind, pumping the gas of the car a little bit more. He turned the steering wheel at the right moment, causing the super-fast car to take the turn at a heart-racing speed.

In the passenger seat beside him, Vala smiled to the roof. "Yes you can, darling." She lifted her head up from the back of the seat, her hair whipping around her face. "You've been waiting for the perfect moment to get Cameron back for the little prank he pulled with the itching powder."

Daniel grinned, taking another fast turn and leading the car higher up the mountain road. "Yes, but does taking a joyride in his new Saturn really count as payback?"

"It does when he doesn't know you've taken the car." She murmured playfully, joining in with him as he laughed again.

Not daring to spare her a glance at the speed he was going, Daniel made his comment anyway. "Of course it helps to have an accomplice to help swipe the keys from his locker."

Vala leaned her head back against the seat again and smiled. "Who knew my long dormant talents would come in so handy to you?" She reached up and fiddled with the controls to the sunroof.

"Yes, who knew?" Daniel mocked her accent, earning a good punch to his right arm.

"So," Vala reached into the visor above his head and took out the lone CD case. "Let's see what our dear Colonel likes to jam to." Popping the case open, she 'hmmmm'ed curiously.

Slowing the car down a little, Daniel glanced over as she held it up so he could see. "Bon Jovi, huh?" He snorted a little. "Never pictured Mitchell as a glam rock guy."

Tilting her head, Vala popped the CD out. "I guess it was all the leather."

The car swerved a little as Daniel burst out laughing. Once he felt a little under control once more. "Don't do that while I'm driving."

"Oh, so save the 'Cameron is gay' jokes for the dinner table?" Vala questioned innocently, cranking the volume as the beginning tune for 'Livin' on a Prayer' began to come over the speakers.

Daniel threw her a smirk. "You are a bad girl."

Pulling Cam's sunglasses out of the center console, Vala slipped them on. "The worst." She grinned, and then began belting the chorus to the song as it came on.

Caught up in the moment, Daniel couldn't help himself from joining her. He hit the gas a little harder again, taking the car deeper into the back mountain woods of Cheyenne Mountain.

Hours later, they'd pulled back into the SGC parking area to find Cam leaning angrily against Daniel's truck.

"Oh, he's mad!" Vala announced delightfully

Daniel unbuckled his seat belt and looked at her. "Yeah, wait until he finds out the back seat came in _very_ handy." He gave her a wink and opened his door.

"Yes…" Vala opened her door, but the pair shared a look before climbing out. "Well, 'Lay Your Hands On Me' is just a…hands on…kind of song."

_**She's a soft place to land**_

Daniel ached all over. Everything, from his head, to his back, to his knees, was screaming. Muscles burned from overuse and exhaustion weighed him down like a lead balloon. It was all he could do to keep his eyes open as he limped his way from the elevator to his quarters, his boot dangling from near-limp fingers.

Only one thing kept him going, and that was her lying in the comfortable bed. The thought made the throbbing of sore joints, and an ankle that was twice its normal size, a little more bearable. All he had to do was slide the card through the reader, push open the door, undress and crawl in bed.

Each hurdle, each mental push, had been leading up to this moment. Daniel had kept going, under sheer force of will, knowing she would be there to soften the blow when the will gave out and he came crashing down.

The tumble began when he opened the door and stepped in the room, seeing her snuggled up beneath the blanket on the bed. Like a descent in slow motion, Daniel felt the lead loosening as if in freefall. Each piece of clothing he shed thundered hard against the floor, freeing him of unnecessary weight.

He hit a snag at the pants, though. His ankle had swelled just a little bit snugger against the material, making it near impossible to pull the damn pants off without inducing pain. Daniel found he was too exhausted to even attempt to pull them off standing up, so he collapsed to a disorderly sitting heap on the floor.

"Damn it." He mumbled, hissing at the lightest brushing of material on his tender skin. Maybe Carolyn had been right about the overnight stay in her infirmary. She had said it was just a bit swollen from walking on it too much, but had insisted on a stay nonetheless. Daniel had fought her, of course, and finally she'd caved when he'd gone dirty and used words like 'Cameron' and 'missed him.'

Daniel hissed again as he stood up and overcorrected, putting too much pressure on the sprain.

"Daniel?" Vala's tired mumble drifted up from the blanket cocoon.

Limping the short distance caused more pain than he would've admitted. "Yeah, it's…" Daniel winced. "Me."

Vala pushed up in bed and tried to get a glimpse of him in the darkness. "Are you okay?" She questioned with a tone thick with sleep and heavy with concern. "You sound hurt."

"I am hurt." He told her, lowering onto the edge of the bed. When Vala moved to sit up even more, his words catching her attention, Daniel placed a hand on her shoulder and gently pushed her back down. "My back hurts, my knees hurt, my hands – hell, even my brain feels bruised."

He maneuvered himself into a laying position, with a few grunts of pain thrown in. "And I did one hell of a number on my ankle." Daniel confessed, cuddling up to her back. He wrapped his arms around her waist and nuzzled his nose softly into her neck.

"You should be in the infirmary." Vala whispered sleepily, the way her body practically melted into his embrace contesting her words.

"I know." He whispered back, the pull of sleep and the need to just hold her denying any further words from escaping. Daniel had reached the end of his descent, and Vala was the softness that kept him safe after such a fall.

_**And a goo**__**d feeling knowing**_

There was nothing worse than listening to a big-headed politician preach priority after he'd only found out about the program just two weeks before. Sure, Daniel had been through enough of these diatribes over the years – with Kinsey, with Simmons, with all the various delegates from at least a hundred different worlds.

That didn't make sitting through one any easier. No amount of experience could stem the kind of boredom produced by some aging government type's monotone voice.

Suppressing yet another yawn as Senator something or other droned on, Daniel continued to doodle on the legal pad in front of him. Just another of Jack's bad habits he'd picked up over the years. There was a collection of briefing doodles made by all the members of SG-1, some stupid tradition that they had latched onto in the early days. This one was definitely gonna have to go in there.

"Are you listening, Doctor Jackson?" The Senator demanded and all eyes turned on Daniel as he looked up from his artistic masterpiece.

He smiled wanly. "Of course, Senator. You were talking about us playing havoc with the world's greatest asset and deepest secret…" Daniel had always had the knack of hearing what someone said even when he was distracted. It was what had helped him learn so many languages so easily.

The baited line worked like a charm and the Senator went back to his rant. It would mean another forty-five minutes of mindless preaching, but at least Daniel wasn't under the microscope. Just to make sure he wasn't singled out again, he began to nod dramatically at all the right moments. Not enough to draw attention, but enough to show he was paying attention…ish.

Another bad little habit picked up from _way_ too much time with Jack O'Neill.

Daniel was fighting a smile at the thought when something landed in his lap under the briefing table. Using his free hand – for he couldn't stop the massive doodle mid-mustache on Senator Unimportant – he carefully unwrapped the hidden note and read the elegant writing.

'_The mustache – it's not big enough.'_

Licking his lips, Daniel looked up at the raven haired trouble maker in the seat next to him. Vala seemed transfixed with every word coming from the Senator's mouth. The doe-eyed expression of hers, of course, was an obvious tell to Daniel that she was just leading the old wannabe on. She'd done it to him enough for him to recognize it.

He stopped his doodling for a moment and scrawled a quick response back.

'_Actually, I was going for more of a poostache.'_

As if she'd been watching him the whole time, Vala brought one her hands down from its place fisted at her cheek and discreetly took the note back. She sat back in her chair and casually opened the note. After a moment, her grey eyes glanced at his masterpiece, and then up at him. She raised her eyebrows in an agreement to his comment, and then returned her attention to the still talking Senator.

Even still, Vala managed to write a comment back.

Daniel nearly laughed at what it said.

'_He does seem like the shit-eating type to me. Perfect ASSessment, darling.'_

"Care to share, Dr. Jackson?" The Senator had Daniel looking up from the note in his lap and fighting hard to hide the amusement on his face.

"Oh, no sir…" He pocketed the paper and leaned back in his chair. "Please, continue." He added in a way that would make Jack O'Neill proud.

The Senator gave him a displeased glare, and then returned to his tirade. When the heat was once again off of him, Daniel spared a glance in Vala's direction. She was still feigning interest in the pompous jerk, but for a moment she was able to slip her gaze his direction and offer up a subtle wink.

Daniel ducked his head in an attempt to hide his smile. It was hard to, though, when it was such a good feeling knowing that Vala was just _there_ – that he wasn't alone, even when it came to getting in trouble.

_**She's a warm conversation that I wouldn't miss fo**__**r nothing.**_

"Jackson, what the hell are you doing?" Cam muttered from the double bed just two feet from Daniel's.

Rolling onto his back, Daniel held the cell phone in his hand up and hit his first speed dial. "The same thing I do every night, Pinky…" He smiled at his joke while bringing the phone to his ear.

A groan came from the other bed. "Princess has got you wrapped tighter than…well, than something tight." The lack of creativity in the Colonel's words just reminded them both how tired they were. The creak of the bed moving as Cam shifted followed, and then- "And I'm not Pinky."

"Well, you're definitely not the Brain." Daniel quipped around a yawn just as the other end finally picked up.

Her voice was soft and lethargic, but just as beautiful as it had been the night before. "Hello?"

Daniel closed his eyes and tried to picture Vala wrapped up in the comforter on their bed. "Hey, did I wake you?"

"Maybe." There was that playful inflection to her tone. Damn, he really did miss her.

"I'm sorry… I can let you go if you want." He said sympathetically, though near praying she would decline the offer.

Vala laughed airily into the phone, causing static in his ear. "Come now, Daniel." He could hear her shifting in bed and the very faint sign on the bedside lamp switching on. "Why would I ever not want to talk to you?"

Smiling smugly, Daniel tilted his head. "You don't seem to like it when I'm lecturing you."

"Yes, well…let's not dwell on that." She said in a way that conveyed the smile in her voice over the phone. "So, how goes things with the Washington big heads? Still having a hard time?"

The smile fell a little at the reminder of why they were currently _not_ together. "If I wasn't, I would be there right now instead of in this room with a cranky Colonel."

"I heard that." Cam mumbled from the depths of his pillow.

Daniel turned onto his shoulder, away from the other bed. Vala went on talking, but he didn't really hear her words. He gazed through the opening in the curtains in front of the sliding glass door. The lights of D.C. shined brightly through the small opening, and just drove home how he wanted to be home even more.

"I miss you." He blurted, halting her mid-gossip which he wasn't even listening to in the first place.

"I miss you too, Daniel." Vala responded after a moment. It was obvious by her tone that she'd been thrown by his admission. "Darling, are you okay?"

Daniel sighed and closed his eyes. "I will be… just talk to me. Hearing you is the _one _thing I've looked forward to all day."

"Well, that makes me feel kind of special." She preened for a moment. Then her voice softened. "You really do miss me, huh?"

He nodded into his pillow. "Yes, I really do. I wouldn't miss these talks with you for anything…" Daniel grabbed his pillow and turned over, chucking it at Cam after the 'oh god!' he'd moaned with disgust.

"Do you two need to be separated?" Vala asked with amusement after she heard a thump and Daniel's shouted 'hey!' on the other end of the phone.

"Desperately." Daniel finally sighed, flopping down into his pillow. It had been returned in much the same manner it had been lost. "But enough about me and _Cameron_," He let his voice rise at the name, practically shouting it to the other bed. He saw an absent hand waving in the darkness in response.

"Tell me all about you…please." Daniel finished, letting his eyes close. Vala happily agreed to the topic, and began telling him all about her adventures back home without him. He didn't care if it was all about her shopping fiascos or botched nail appointments. Her voice was soothing and calmed him in a way that even the most peaceful sleep couldn't provide.

Cam would probably bitch at him in the morning for staying up half the night again, talking to his girl. But Daniel didn't care. He hadn't been lying when he'd said he wouldn't miss it for anything.

_**She's a fighter when she's mad.**_

Daniel knew things were bad for him. He'd learned a lot of the tells for when things weren't going well within his body. The numb, tingly feeling his fingers were experiencing wasn't a good thing. The way pain throbbed behind his eyes, and the world seemed to twist and turn even when he was sitting still, told of a concussion. Those were never good. Oh, and he'd been coughing up blood for days.

Of course, interrogation and torture never made for good family fun. He'd known the moment they'd captured him, and dragged him into the cell he now occupied, that things were bad for him.

Daniel laughed deliriously at his train of thought, letting his head drop and his eyes drift shut. The world seemed to fade out of existence for a while after that, and he was lost in a haze of pain and confusion.

A tapping on his cheek brought him back, and he lifted his head. Slowly, Daniel opened his heavy eyelids to take in a sight that really wasn't all that bad.

"There you are." She smiled, brushing away the dirt that caked one side of his face. "I was wondering if I'd have to carry you out of here."

He snorted. "You can't carry me…too fat." Were his words slurring? He really couldn't tell because he was too busy trying to lie down and drift off into the haziness again.

A hand on his other cheek stopped his descent. "You're not fat, silly." Her voice was so soft, so welcoming. It made him smile some more. "You are buff and handsome and strong." She busied herself with trying to get him to his feet. He had to admit it was hard seeing as it didn't feel like he had any feet at all.

"You're pretty." Daniel whispered, now trying to lean in close to her.

"Thank you, darling." She laughed, slinging his arm over her shoulder. "I'm hoping you'll remember saying that after the drugs wear off."

Daniel shook his head, causing them both to stumble as she tried to lead him out of the cell. "Didn't drug me…" He blinked at the open door. Had that always been that way? He laughed again. "Just hit me… a lot."

She had maneuvered him out into the hallway, where it seemed more people were waiting. "I can see that."

Continuing on like she hadn't spoken, Daniel tried to slide down the wall she had rested him against. "They hit me, and kicked me…did lots of not nice things." Several pairs of hands pulled him back to a semi-standing position.

Then his arm was slung over another set of shoulders, and he was moving with them. They seemed to be talking to each other, and ignoring him. All their voices were loud in his ears and made his head hurt.

Still, Daniel continued talking. "And they had a woman…" The talking seemed to quiet down a bit at his words now. "She was pretty," He smiled and pointed at her as they stopped moving. "Like you! She…she was all…hot."

"Man, they really put you through the wringer…" A familiar southern drawl came from his left and Daniel tried to look that direction. The person the voice belonged to was blurry and swam before him like a mirage.

He began to list to the side. "I don't know about that…" Daniel whipped his head back around, and stumbled backwards into someone. He wasn't sure who, but she was standing before him again so it couldn't have been her. "But I know she…the woman…"

Another smile came to his face, especially when she got closer. "Know she what, Daniel?"

"Kissed me…a lot." He whispered to her with that smile still on his face.

"Oh she did?" There was an unusual quality to her exotic voice, and it made Daniel frown. His frown deepened as she moved out of his line of sight, and that southern drawl, just at 

his left ear, called out to her desperately. Then explosions and gun fire started going around him, and the sound alone sent him to his knees.

A strong arm across his chest halted him and pulled him back up. Then he was being dragged along once more. Daniel tried to figure out what was going on – why everyone was shooting all of a sudden. He looked around, trying to figure out where she'd gone.

Then he saw her, like a moment of clarity. "That's Vala." He tried to point at the beautiful creature across the room, moving with all the grace of a cat attacking its prey. A lot of prey in this case.

"Yes, it is." The voice, he suddenly remembered, belonged to Mitchell. It was the strained, sort of pissed off way it'd come off this time that had hit it home. Daniel turned his head to look at him. So he was the one dragging him along.

"What's she doing?" Daniel asked in confusion, letting Cam shove him down behind a large stone something. It made for a good backrest, he assumed. His unfocused blue gaze looked up at the man now shooting over his backrest.

Mitchell looked down at him for a second. "She's kickin' ass."

Blinking, Daniel looked across at the wall just a few inches from his one outstretched leg. Wow, why had they picked such a tiny space to sit in? "Oh…" He frowned again after a moment, looking back at the Colonel. "Why?"

"I believe it is because the leader of the group who kidnapped you kissed you." Another familiar rumble of a voice said just to his left. Daniel looked that way and smiled. Teal'c was here too!

Then his words began to set in. "Oh…" And then they _really_ set in through the muddiness of his head. "Oh!" Daniel looked between his two friends, finally feeling like he understood something for the first time in days. "That's bad."

Cam laughed. "Yeah, I think the bad guys are finding that out the hard way right now."

"Bad…really, really bad." Daniel nodded like he'd never heard Mitchell. Vala didn't like when someone kissed something that was hers - she got mad when they did. And Vala being mad was a bad thing. And Daniel had thought things had gone bad for him.

_**And she's a lover when she's loving**_

He barely had the door closed before she was at him, pushing him back against the hard wood material. Hands clutching his neck on both sides, nails digging in, her lips were like an unavoidable flame as they pressed hard to his.

Daniel tried to get a hold of the situation before he lost control completely. "Vala…work." He mumbled against her, futilely pushing at her with his free hand against her chest.

Her grey eyes were ablaze as she pulled back to stare at him. One of her hands came from the side of his neck to take hold of the files he was holding. The ones he had told her he was bringing home to work on. The ones she now tossed to the floor in an uncaring pile.

"Can wait." She practically ordered. Her hand once more came up to his neck and pulled his head down to meet her lips in another kiss. Daniel found the last of his resolve flittering to the floor with the papers as Vala dipped her tongue into his mouth. He brought his hands around to grip her ass and hoisted her up. Her legs instinctively wrapped around his waist.

Daniel bodily pushed himself off the door and carried Vala through the house towards the bedroom, their lips and tongues never letting up. Only when he was at the threshold to the room did he pull back. Hands still cupping his face, Vala kept Daniel's gaze on hers as he lowered her to a standing position once more.

"You shouldn't love me like I love you." She whispered, placing the softest of kisses against his lips.

"Too late." Daniel whispered back. He reached up and grabbed her hands, pulling them down and holding onto them as he guided her backwards into the bedroom. They kept moving until the back of Vala's knees connected with the bed and she found herself sitting on the mattress.

Kneeling before her and entwining their fingers, Daniel leaned in and gave Vala his own soft kiss. He felt her smile against him and pulled back so he could see it in full. Sitting before him wasn't the lustful seductress that had pounced at the door, but the beautiful lover that she'd only shown to one person.

"I love you." Vala murmured the words so soft that they seemed to brush against him like silk. And Daniel smiled for her like he never smiled for anyone else because she was his one person, just like he was hers.

--

**Part 2 is already halfway finished, and I'm working on getting it done ASAP. So keep an eye out for that coming soon. And, as always, reviews are definitely appreciated!**


	2. Part 2

**Spoilers/Warnings:** In this part, we have some mention of Cam/Carolyn ship. There's also references to Solitudes, Lost City (both very minor), Bounty, Heroes P.2, FiaD, Prometheus Unbound, and Continuum. I also used a character from the SG-1 novel 'City of the Gods', though you don't need any knowledge of the novel at all.

_**----**_

_**She's a Saturday out on the town**_

Daniel slurped from his Starbucks coffee, trusting Vala's hand griping his and tugging him along to keep him from colliding with the wall. He closed his eyes and smiled at the familiar easing of his caffeine addiction. Sure, it really wouldn't help his current situation any, but Daniel didn't care. He was cool with just having his coffee.

In fact, he felt like he'd be cool with anything right then. His smile widened at the thought, and Daniel had to fight the urge to let out a giggle. It really was very unnatural for him to giggle, after all. So instead, he stuck to smiling while letting Vala pull him along, and being cool with everything.

Of course when he finally opened his eyes as they stopped moving, and found they were in the briefing room, Daniel realized maybe everything that morning wasn't so cool. He let out a rather loud sigh.

"Damn, here already." He said to no one in particular.

"Yes." Vala said from his side, sounding a bit exasperated. "Made it all this way, and I've just realized I left my coffee in the car."

Daniel swung his own up, dangling it. "You can have mine." He offered with a smile.

She smiled back. "Thank you, darling, but it's not the same kind." Vala released his hand and tucked a small tuff of hair beneath the edge of the baseball hat he was wearing. "Think you can manage without me for a few minutes?"

Softening his smile, Daniel leaned in and gave her a kiss. "Go get your coffee…" He mumbled to her, peering at her amused grey eyes through the sunglasses he hadn't bothered to take off. "I can handle myself."

Vala placed a quick departing kiss on his lips, and then dashed out of the room. Daniel remained near the door, still smiling, until someone over by the briefing table cleared their throat. He looked up, and his smile grew once again.

"Hey guys!" He called to the rest of the team, who had been watching the exchange in surprise. As Daniel started for the table, he realized by their looks that his little moment with Vala hadn't been the only thing that was surprising. Both Sam and Mitchell looked like they'd never seen him show up to a briefing before.

Of course, he'd never actually shown up in just a t-shirt and jeans, wearing a backwards baseball hat and sunglasses, but that wasn't really here nor there. It wasn't like it was _his_ fault they'd been called in for an unexpected briefing on a Sunday morning. He hadn't really had time to think about his attire…among other things.

"What?" Daniel asked, placing his coffee cup down on the table with a little bit more concentration then was normally needed. He flopped into the nearest chair with a lot less grace, and turned a fake pout on his teammates. "Nobody's happy to see me? I don't get a hello or good morning, or anything?"

"Good morning, Daniel Jackson." Teal'c answered almost immediately, seeming more amused by the state of his younger friend than surprised. "You seem well."

Daniel grinned at the Jaffa. "Mornin' T!" He snatched up his coffee and took a sip. "And I am very well…" He added as he set the cup back down. "Thanks for noticing."

Inclining his head, Teal'c smiled. "Indeed. It appears you and Vala Mal Duran enjoyed your evening out last night."

Smile turning a bit naughty, Daniel looked from Teal'c to the others. "Oh, we did."

"You and Vala went out?" Sam asked, finally recovering enough from her stupor to speak up. She smiled as Daniel nodded enthusiastically, and shared a look with Cam. He too was beginning to recover from the initial shock of seeing Daniel come in looking so… well, casual was one way to put it.

"So what'd you and Princess do?" Mitchell added in his own question.

Daniel tilted his head back and closed his eyes. "I think the question is what _didn't_ we do." He grinned as memories from the previous night came back. "Bowling, dancing…" His blue eyes, hidden behind the dark shades, came back down to glance at his friends. "Vala _even_ managed to get us in to some all-night skate thing…" He snorted out a laugh. "Of course that was _after_ we'd been a few places, so skating wasn't so easy…"

After sharing a slightly bewildered look with Sam, Cam leaned forward. "You and Vala did all of that last night? And you didn't call us to join you!?"

"It was _supposed_ to be just a romantic dinner for _her_." Daniel replied petulantly. "But she wanted to have a night on the town…" He shrugged, smiling innocently. "And I just couldn't tell her no."

Daniel continued on. "That was before I knew we'd have to come _in_ this morning, but hey…" He grabbed his coffee again and finished off the rest of it. "I'm cool with it."

Cam flopped back in his seat and crossed his arms. "You're cool with it? Jackson, man, you look like you got no sleep at all!"

"Now that's not true!" Daniel said, pointing a defensive finger at the Colonel. "I got in a very good hour of sleep before Landry called us." He said with a little laugh. "Though I'm not sure it was _quite_ enough cause I don't feel very-"

"Rested?" Sam guessed, but Daniel shook his head.

"No, not that."

Mitchell put forward his own guess. "Alert?"

Daniel shook his head again. "Nah, that's not it either."

"Sober." Teal'c said with a knowing smirk.

Snapping his fingers, Daniel pointed at him. "That's it!" He looked at the two Colonels, smiling with amusement. "I don't feel very sober."

Sam shook her head, laughing a little as she spoke. "You're still drunk."

"I am." Daniel sighed pleasantly, slouching down in his chair and still smiling all the while.

"The General is _not _going to like this." Cam laughed, rocking his chair back and forth as he gazed at his very relaxed friend.

Daniel shrugged just as a familiar voice came from the doorway.

"He's just going to have to live with it." Vala announced as she sauntered into the room, looking much more alert and less inebriated than her boyfriend. She took the chair next to Daniel's and placed her coffee on the table.

"It's not _our_ fault he called us in after a Saturday night out." She finished, resting one of her hands on Daniel's thigh. He nodded, tilting his head to the side to smile at her. So what if Landry got a little pissed that he was…well, pissed. After the fun he'd had the night before just being with the woman he loved, Daniel would be cool with it.

_**And a church girl on Sunday**_

Not for the first time that morning, Daniel found himself jerked awake by a hard slap on his thigh. He blinked sleepily and turned a half-hearted glare to the woman in the pew next to him.

"Ow!" He whispered indignantly.

Vala sent him her own glare. "Well, don't fall asleep…_again_!" She whispered right back, trying not to disrupt the preacher in the middle of his sermon. It was bad enough Daniel's snoring a minute ago had begun to attract stares of the most annoying kind. "And stop slouching down."

Shifting up some, tightening the arms he had crossed over his chest, Daniel looked out across the backs of the other people's heads. "Well, I can't help it if this place is boring the _hell _out of me!" He didn't let it slip past his mind that he was discussing hell in a church. His blue eyes found grey once more. "Remind me why we're here again?"

"Because," Vala pinched his elbow, causing him to gasp and sit up a little straighter. "We promised Cameron, while we were here in Kansas, that we would do all of his family's traditions." She reached up and pulled Daniel's hand down as he pretended to squish Cam's head from a far. The Colonel was sitting in the front most pew with the rest of his family.

"And that includes church." She finished on a hiss, crushing his fingers in her grasp.

Daniel opened his mouth in silent agony, trying desperately hard to get his hand back. "I agreed to be his best man," He yanked hard and let out a huge breath of air as he got his hand away from Vala. "I didn't agree to boredom by sermon!"

"Well I promised both Cameron _and_ Carolyn, who is trying her best to impress her soon to be in-laws," Vala pointed a finger at him. "That we would be here and we wouldn't cause a scene, so shut it before I really do break your hand."

He squinted at her and pouted in a way that made her quite proud, though she refused to show it. "Why are you being so mean to me?"

Vala rolled her eyes at his whining tone. "Why are _you_ being so petulant?" She softened her look to one of slight curiosity. "What's so wrong with being here? I thought you respected other religions."

"I'm sorry, okay?" Daniel offered up the apology reluctantly. He shifted upwards again, pulling a little at his suit jacket. "It's just after all these years fighting off gods and demoting false religions, it's kind of hard to believe any anymore." His face grew suspicious. "Why are you so interested in this religion anyway?"

She shrugged. "I don't know… I guess I just want to learn about something that's very significant on your…" Vala paused, and looked around. She noticed that several of the same nosy people were still staring at them. "Here." She amended, looking back at Daniel. "You're always encouraging me to learn more."

Vala gave him her most endearing smile. "And right now I want to learn more about why these people put so much faith into this." Daniel rolled his eyes at the line, but a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he couldn't meet her gaze.

Turning her attention back to the preacher, Vala let out a deep breath. "You really _should_have more faith, Daniel."

"I have faith." He whispered back defensively. "I have faith in my team, and in my ability to not die…ever." Daniel was the one to get Vala fighting a smile this time. "I have always had and always _will_ have faith in you." Her grey eyes flicked his direction for a moment before back to the preacher she was now having a hard time focusing on.

Daniel let his attention drift back out over the people in the other pews. "And I _do_ respect other religions." He emphasized the point she'd made a few minutes before. "I just prefer _not _to partake in them."

She let out the quietest laugh she could. "You didn't have a problem in partaking in the religion of the people on P3R-229." Vala whispered knowingly in his ear. It earned her a rare dirty smirk from Daniel. "Ah, so you do remember that one."

"Of course I remember..." Daniel reached one of his hands down to take hers, entwining their fingers. "Ritual sex," He said it a little louder than intended and gained stares from several more people. Leaning in, he whispered the rest in her ear. "As a rite of matrimonial unity is _never_ a bad thing in my book."

Vala 'hmmm'ed in agreement, pulling their joined hands into her lap. The tattoo on Daniel's left wrist, the sign of a sealed marriage agreement from the lovely people of P3R-229, showed from beneath his jacket sleeve. She fussed with the end until the small symbol of what they now shared was again hidden beneath the fabric, and then glanced at the bracelets on her right wrist to make sure her own tattoo was covered.

"You know," Daniel continued on in a tone that said she obviously didn't. "That most Christian religions don't believe in sex before marriage." He turned his falsely innocent eyes on her. "Or sex as an act of marriage."

Grey eyes narrowed. "Really?"

Daniel smiled, not hiding the smugness of it. "Yes really… it's all quite sinful actually." He purposely tapped a finger against her bracelets, above where he knew her tattoo was.

Vala let out a sharp breath and turned a glare on the rest of the church-goers. "I don't think I like this wonko religion anymore." She announced rather loudly, causing even the preacher to falter in his sermon and stare at them.

Grinning victoriously, Daniel winked at Cameron, who was giving him the nastiest glare. Payback really was a bitch sometimes.

_**She's a cross around her neck**_

The library was quiet so late at night, darkness looming from almost every corner. The normal, everyday person wouldn't know how to handle themselves in such a place that was usually so bright and cheery.

But Daniel found calm in the oppressive creepiness of a library open past hours only for him. Part of it was because it gave him a chance to research in a quiet that could never be found at the SGC (and when a big treaty with important off world allies was on the horizon, quiet was definitely something very welcome). The other part was because he_ wasn't _the normal, everyday person and had the privilege of getting an Air Force General to pull some strings so he could be at the library after hours.

The light on the table he was using cast an eerie glow around the vast space, most of the light being swallowed up by the darkness after only a few short feet. A few emergency lights glowed in the distance past the tall shelving, the only sign they were even on being a faint prick of light over the tops of the numerous rows of books.

Books and journals littered the large tabletop before him, feeding him the knowledge he needed to once again get Earth ahead of the trading game when it came to off world negotiations. After the last several years of doing nothing but trying to fight off an evil that was beyond imaginable, Daniel finally felt like he was getting back to what he loved about working for the SGC. It wasn't the heroics or the peril as much as it was the rush of cross-referencing and comparing known Earth cultures to possible off world counterparts, and trying to find the key to gaining their trust. He loved the mysteries and riddles of figuring out how a people ticked.

Even the guard snoring over by the wall brought the whole experience into focus, almost like a sort of Zen for the archaeologist. Having all the references at his fingertips, all to himself, and having the late night hours to crack a civilization's secrets was like living one of his dreams. Daniel honestly didn't know how it could get any better…

"Can I be of some assistance, Dr. Jackson?" A sultry voice murmured just off to his right, pulling Daniel from his mixed thoughts of livened dreams and the task at hand. End of his pen in his mouth, he looked up in Vala's direction.

And felt his heart skip a beat at the sight of her. Leaning against the end of the closest shelf, Vala was decked out in the skimpiest outfit he'd ever seen her squeeze into. The pen fell unnoticed from his mouth as it dropped open.

Blue eyes started from the bottom, where she was wearing the sexiest pair of heels, and moved up bare legs. Past the extremely short tweed miniskirt, over the tight white blouse – lingering of course on the massive amount of cleavage being held in by the reddest bra he'd ever seen, up her throat, and stopping on the faux innocent grey-eyed gaze behind a pair of classy, albeit fake, glasses.

So _that's_ why she'd been so adamant about coming. Now Daniel was glad he hadn't said no like he was first inclined too.

"Holy shit…" He finally figured out how to get his mouth working again. "Vala, I…"

She held up a finger. "I'm not Vala." Pushing off the shelf, 'not' Vala began to stroll at an achingly slow pace his direction. "I'm the innocent librarian," She stopped a few feet away and twirled a finger in a strand of hair that had fallen from a messy bun held together with a pencil. "Here to help you."

Daniel shifted as his jeans seemed to grow significantly tighter. "Librarian, huh?"

"Oh yes…" His own personal librarian smiled seductively, taking the remaining steps to him. She slowly got onto her knees between his open legs and Daniel felt his breathing quicken. "And I'm here to…" With one hand braced against his right knee, she ran her other up the inside of his left thigh. "Assist in any way you need."

And here he'd been thinking the night couldn't get any more like his fantasies. Of course in said fantasies, Daniel's rarely shown male ego took control and he was the one in charge. From the way things were looking, he didn't have any control at all over the situation.

He reached down and grabbed her hand just before it hit its mark, intent on being the leader of this little game. "Any way, you say?" Daniel's voice had dropped a level as he brought the back of her hand to his lips and kissed. Then he gripped it and pulled them both to a standing position, her body flush against his.

From the smile on her face, Daniel knew this was what Vala wanted. "Anything you ask of me, Doctor." Her voice was the epitome of innocent, and the lie in that aroused him in way nothing ever had before. Bringing one hand to the back of her neck, placing the other against her hip, Daniel pulled her tighter against him as he crashed his lips to hers hungrily.

It was apparent that act was just that when Vala refused to relinquish complete control to him. After their mouths had battled it out for several minutes, Daniel broke away from her with a sort of groan.

"Finished already, darling?" Vala whispered, placing a teasing kiss against his lips.

"What happened to my innocent librarian?" Daniel couldn't help but smile at the challenge in her eyes. As much as he wanted her to let him lead, it really was too much fun to fight it out with her. It always had been. That was why he'd fallen in love with Vala.

Vala shrugged in his embrace, reaching down and scraping an impatient fingernail over his belt buckle. "Out to lunch."

Nodding like it was completely plausible; Daniel let his gaze drift down to her chest. That's when he noticed the gold cross resting against her pale flesh. Bringing the hand on her hip up, he brushed a finger over the accessory. "What's with the cross?"

She gave him an _almost _genuinely sweet smile. "I'm playing innocent, remember?"

"Ah! Right!" Daniel replied with a quick bob of his head. Moving his lips down close to hers once more, he smiled not so sweetly. "How could I forget?" He gave her a short, but needy, kiss. Vala laughed in her little way as her response to his question, giving him control of this one.

When Daniel pulled up, there was a down to business gleam in his eyes. "I suddenly remember there might be a reference I'll possibly need several rows down from here…" He started guiding her backwards towards the shelves. "You know, away from the guard. Think you can help me?"

Vala smiled. "Am I not the librarian?" She turned then and started to pull him down into the darkened sections of the library.

"Oh, you are so not!" Daniel laughed in anticipation of what was to come.

_**And a cuss word cause it's Monday**_

She hates Mondays. It's the death of the weekend and her two wonderful days alone with him. Gone are the hours of cuddling beneath the covers well after 'get up' time and pointless trips to the grocery store just so they could mess with the heads of the horny teenagers who work there.

It means being reminded that Cameron needs to come over and fix the shower when a blast of freezing water hits her first thing in the morning. It means the laundry they'd tossed all over the house needs to be picked up and gotten ready to be taken to Sam's since their washer has been broken since Friday.

No breakfast in bed on Mondays. Instead she has to coax _him_ out of the bed after he's overslept with a mug of coffee which she's already spilled twice on her hand. Rushing to the bathroom once he's conscious enough to not dump the whole thing on himself reminds her that they used all the burn ointment last time Jack was over barbequing.

Breakfast always burns because she's too busy making sure he's up and in the shower, not falling back asleep. Trying to change the meal after scraping the charred remains of bacon into the trash is thwarted by a carton of sour milk and not enough cereal left in the box to please even an ant. Now she's gotta go to the store when she gets a chance, and try and get him to remember to check the expiration dates on things.

Mondays mean busted hair dryers and missing shoes and a boyfriend who she loves beyond death, but is a bitch to get in gear. Trying to remember where she'd moved the work he'd brought home and never worked on, and looking for misplaced access cards to the base, are all part of her Mondays. It means he'll be all ready and waiting for her, looking completely fabulous in just a shirt and jeans. All the while, she looks horrible with still dripping hair and a rushed makeup attempt without mascara because she'd forgot she was out of that too.

Gone is the laziness of not having to go anywhere and the out of nowhere kisses he lays on her lips, neck, arms, legs – simply because he can without people mocking his choice of partners. Mondays puts them back to arguing around the halls of the SGC and sneaked whispered words of affection when they hope nobody is watching. Sure, people know they're together, but the rumors just spread more wildly when they have confirmation of the relationship.

The combination of what she has to wait five days to get again and what she has to deal with in the coming five days always sets her on edge. So when she spills the last little bit of coffee that she so desperately wanted down the front of her one clean shirt, Vala can't help herself.

"Son of a bitch!" She cries to the kitchen, practically throwing the cup in the sink and storming into the living room. "Might as well make yourself comfortable, darling." She's already peeling the shirt off as she moves hastily towards the bedroom. "I don't know how long it's going take me to find something to wear."

Daniel sits down on the arm of the couch, waiting until she's out of the room before pulling the phone out of his jacket pocket. Dialing his third speed dial, he hits his heel against the couch in a rhythm-less pattern.

"Hi Sam." Daniel says softly as he hears another curse drift up from the bedroom. "Yeah, we're going to be late again." He looked at his watch. "You want anything from Starbucks – I'm gonna stop and get her something…alright, thanks."

He closes the phone and lets out a patient sigh. It's only a few minutes later that she comes barreling back into the room, trying desperately to slip into a different pair of boots then she was wearing before. Of course she had to change them – it was a whole new outfit.

"What are you just sitting there for?" Vala asks him in exasperation, finally getting her boot on. She snatched up her messenger bag and slings it across her chest. "Let's go!" She doesn't even wait for him as she heads to the door and yanks it open.

Daniel finds himself fighting a smile as he pushes off the couch and grabs his own bag from the top of the coffee table. He reaches down and picks up the fashion magazine she got on Saturday and had forgotten about. He knows she'll bitch about forgetting it later, and slips it into his bag.

He lingers in the doorway, pulling in a deep breath. The only thing he really hates about Mondays is leaving the place where, for two whole days, nothing mattered but her. Where he can finally share intimate memories with someone he loves more than life. The insistent honking of the horn behind him spurs Daniel into action and he quickly closes and locks the door.

But he takes his time down the walk, even as she's waving at him to hurry up. He tries to hold onto the bliss that was the weekend, and savor the moment before him. He knows Vala hates Mondays, and curses their very existence.

That's why Daniel would never tell her he loves them simply to see her get so worked up over things that really aren't a big deal. He loves seeing her try and act like a normal person, even when he knows she's not. Daniel loves Mondays because it shows him how much Vala has changed…

"Darling, as much as I love watching you stroll, can you get your ass in gear?!"

And how much she hasn't.

_**She's a bubble bath and candles**_

"You look like you need a break." Vala whispers in my ear softly, and I inhale at the sensation of her hands working their way down my chest. Turning my head a fraction in the direction of the shoulder her chin is resting on, I let the air out.

"What makes you think that?" My aggravated tone belies the lighthearted nature of the words.

She lets out an airy laugh and I shift my head away as the air brushes my ear. "You've been staring at that picture for the past thirty minutes with no sign of making progress."

I can't help myself. "You've been watching me for the past thirty minutes?"

"I've had my eyes on you for much longer, darling." As much as I've grown to love her little jokes, I groan simply because I'm not in the mood to play games. I wince as she taps her hands hard against my chest. "Come on, I have something for you."

Snatching up my long discarded pencil, I try and lean out of her enticing embrace. "I have to finish this."

Vala just holds on tighter. "You can take a break."

Well shit – there's that tone. The 'I'm gonna win this argument if I have to knock you out' tone. "Vala, hunny, as much as I want a break right now, I _need_ to make some progress on this tablet." I try to use my best pleading voice, but it lacks true enthusiasm. The truth is, I've been staring at this work for too long and it lost its appeal long before that.

"No, you _need_ to come with me…" She hooks her hands under my arms and pulls. I can't help but move with her because I don't want her to hurt herself. As much as she can beat me up, I still outweigh her. "There we go."

Great, now she's talking to me like I'm a puppy.

"Now drop the pencil." She instructs, and I do as I'm told. "And step away from the desk." Again, I'm following orders like I'm expecting a treat any minute. Maybe the puppy thing wasn't too far off. No wonder people think I'm whipped.

Vala smiles and grabs my hands. "Follow me."

"Alright." I sigh, trudging behind her like I'm being led to prison. It's all just an act, of course. After all those hours with just my work and her giving me my space, I need some time with my Vala. Preferably naked and sweaty time, but those are the type of thoughts I never let her hear. No need to let her know I am just a guy looking to get some…

Though every time she gives me the look I'm getting now, I have a feeling she already knows.

"Here we are." Vala announces and I can't help but gape a little at the sight of our usually mundane bathroom. Candlelight flickers off the walls, casting the room in a romantic glow and desirable scent. I can hear the bubbles from the bathtub before I even lean slightly and confirm they are there.

The smile that had faded several hours ago returns to my face when I look at her. She's watching me expectantly. "You drew me a bath."

Vala bounces on her heels and grins. "I drew you a bath."

Pulling her close, I'm already running my fingers under the edge of her shirt. "Is it just for me..." I lick my lips for both the strength that it takes to just know she chose me and knowing she likes when I do it. "Or can I share?"

"Well I was hoping you would share." Vala says, almost huffily. That's my girl – doing something for someone else while still thinking of herself at the same time. It's slightly concerning to wonder when her selfishness became so appealing to me. Probably around the same time all the rest of Vala Mal Duran became so appealing, I decide as I lean into kiss her while she begins to undress me.

"_**Baby come and kiss me."**_

He knew he really shouldn't have gotten involved. He was a better person than that, or he always had liked to think so. Better than all those guys who seemed to flock to the gym together just so they could gossip over the hot young thing they'd had the night before, or which they could go for next. Daniel liked to pride himself on keeping his ego in check – it didn't make him like all those other guys out there.

But when he'd heard her name drift his direction from the testosterone man-huddle not far from him, Daniel found that his reasoning couldn't keep much at bay. So even though he knew he shouldn't bother, he powered down the treadmill he was using, grabbed his water bottle and towel, and made for the group.

They were all fairly young – hadn't been at the SGC for too long. Daniel even recognized some of them from the sort of intro program he did for incoming personnel. If they'd been any of the more senior members, they'd know better than to talk so brazenly and in front of one of _the_ most senior members. Especially about _his_ girlfriend…

Taking a drink from his bottle, Daniel came up behind the group. They'd gotten into some of the more absurd fantasies that seemed to top the rumor mill about his favorite girl. He tried to listen to them, waiting for the right moment to strike like every instinct was telling him to. But when one brought up whips and contortionism, Daniel laughed out right.

"Oh wow, that's a good one!" He said through his laughter, which had startled all the young guys into looking his direction. Shaking his head and glancing at the floor for a moment, Daniel let his amusement taper off. "About as good as hearing some new guys discussing derogatory fantasies about a superior."

One of the more blatant speakers tried to amend the situation. "Dr. Jackson, we didn't mean anything-"

Daniel held up his free hand, halting the kid mid-sentence. "Yes you did." He added with a nod. "And it _is_ understandable, really." The hand dropped. "I mean, Vala is…" He shuddered pleasantly. "Well, she is."

Now he crossed his arms. "More importantly, though, she is _your_ superior and if any of the hard-ass military superiors heard you talking about her like this, well…" Daniel shrugged nonchalantly. "Believe me when I say Antarctica isn't all it's cracked up to be."

"Dr. Jackson…" Again, the brazen one tried to get some kind of say. Daniel wasn't having any of it – not when he was really building up to it.

"But most important of all…" He dropped his voice considerably. "Vala is _my_ girlfriend, and if I _ever _catch you talking about her in any way that's not mission related again…" Daniel made sure to look at every one of them. "You'll wish you'd been reassed to Antarctica."

He caught several looks of disbelief, almost amusement, on their faces. "Do you _really_ want to see if I can really make it happen?"

All their faces froze. "No sir."

"Good." Daniel grinned, dropping his arms. "Well boys, this has been a nice chat we've had. If you'll excuse me, Vala is waiting for me…" He turned to make his way out of the gym, and stopped short.

"Waiting, indeed." She said, her tone just as unreadable as her expression. Vala had her arms crossed in much the same manner he'd had before, and it made Daniel nervous.

Heat crept up his neck as he moved closer to her. "Hi." He offered in his most innocent and repentant voice. Vala held up a finger, causing Daniel to stop his approach.

She gave him her best glare. "Oh, all I get is a 'hi'?" Her arm swung out to indicate the group of men who were watching the exchange with much interest. Daniel could practically feel them enjoying his being caught. "After that ape man performance you just gave, showing off that _I_ was your claim? One would _at least _expect you to ravish me with all your macho manliness!"

Daniel's face flushed a shade darker. "Vala, listen-"

"Oh Darling, I was listening plenty." Vala laughed. "And _what_ a thing to hear! I'm _yours_, and no other man has a right to talk about me. My beauty is something only _you_ can appreciate and every other male around must learn to bow down because you've bagged the ultimate prize."

Daniel opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again. He knew anything he said would just dig the hole that much deeper. Dropping his shamed gaze from her, he quickly brushed past her and towards the door. Dammit, he _knew_ he should've kept his big mouth shut. _Knew_ his ego would get him in nothing but trouble. Daniel hoped the couch was still a comfortable place to sleep because it was most likely where he'd end up that evening…

He had reached the exit, hand poised to shove the door open and grant him some reprieve from his embarrassment. But her voice calling out to him made him stop.

"Baby…"

So much for a coward's escape. Daniel pulled in a deep breath and turned to face his angel-face executioner.

The hard scowl he found there melted into a look of pride and amusement. "Come and kiss me, darling." Vala grinned, holding out her arms and beckoning him to come back.

Out of all the stupid things Daniel could be at times, an idiot was never one of them. He grinned to match hers, striding back over to her. The sense of ego assaulted him when he crashed his lips to hers, amidst the bewildered stares of the group still watching.

She melted into his rough embrace, and when Daniel finally pulled away Vala was breathing a little unsteadily. He watched as her eyes fluttered opened a moment later, accompanied by a dopey smile of satisfaction.

"I knew I'd like your possessive side." Vala murmured, her voice as unsteady as her breathing. Daniel grinned, leaning his lips in to place a claiming kiss to her neck. And all the while, he could feel the baffled and jealous stares on them.

Even if he did pride himself on being able to contain his ego, every so often it felt damn good to let it free. And if anyone could set it loose, Vala was definitely it.

_**She's that one glass of wine and she's feeling kinda tipsy.**_

Daniel sipped from his drink, nodding appropriately in response to what the woman before him had said. Lowering the glass, he smiled diplomatically at her. She smiled back and started in on another story of someone or other that he really didn't have any interest in.

Resisting the urge to sigh, for it would show how truly bored he was with the whole situation, Daniel instead casually moved his eyes around the large banquet hall. He really hated these black tie events they ended up being ordered to attend every so often. It was just a bunch of stuffed shirts and their trophy wives babbling on about luxuries and trivial happenings that only the super rich and powerful could experience.

He continued to glance around until another pair of eyes caught his attention. Mitchell was staring right at him, obviously waiting to get his attention. Daniel minutely jerked his head to let the Colonel know he saw him. In response, Mitchell flicked his gaze to Vala, who was practically hanging off his arm, then back to Daniel.

A smile came. Daniel knew the signal, knew he was being called in to rescue and remove. He politely excused himself from the still talking woman and the rest of the group she was with, and started to make for Mitchell and Vala's position. He made sure to deposit his drink on a passing waiter's tray as he went. If Cam was calling in for reinforcements already, Daniel knew it was best to handle the situation as soberly as possible.

Her voice was a little louder, with a huskier tone than usual, as he drew near. The smile grew some. The wine glass in her hand was nearly full, the contents almost spilling over the sides as she waved her arm dramatically.

Daniel stepped up directly behind her, reaching out to place his hand gently over hers holding the glass. Vala stopped mid-story and looked over her bare shoulder at him.

"Oh hello, darling!" She grinned happily, tipping back until her back connected with his chest. "I was just telling that story of when you and I were…"

He nodded. "Yeah, I heard." Vala continued to grin and jumped right back into the story for her captive audience. Daniel could see most of them figured she was simply past her limit and were indulging her. He and Cam knew better. Daniel needed to get her away from these people before she really _did _say too much. He looked at Mitchell.

'How many has she had?' He mouthed to him over her head. Vala really hated when she thought he was being too overbearing.

Cam pointed discreetly at the glass once more in Vala's sole grasp. 'Second.' He mouthed back, ending it with that unique grin of his. Daniel understood why. Vala prided herself on being able to hold her liquor – a fact that the rest of the team couldn't contest. But when it came to wine, she was done after two decent size glasses.

"Hey honey?" Daniel interrupted her. He leaned around her a little, trying to get her attention. Vala's grey eyes snapped to his blue almost instantly, and that silly grin was back. She raised her eyebrows in inquiry. "I was gonna head outside for some fresh air, enjoy those gardens and everything."

Daniel threw a bit of charm into it, running a finger down her exposed arm. "Care to join me?" He knew he couldn't over do it, or Vala would surely pick up on his intentions. Not that he didn't truly want to spend time with her in those gardens.

Vala looked at him silently, and for a moment he figured he was busted already. But then she smiled that shy smile of hers and nodded. She brought the wine glass to her mouth and took a sip. Daniel took it as his cue to start leading her to the doors to the gardens, but Vala resisted.

"I can take my wine, right?" She asked with a frown.

He smiled. "Sure."

Her grin was back. "Okay."

Once they were outside, Daniel put his arm around her waist. He admired her in the pale moonlight, the slight shine coming off her black dress lighting her eyes. She brought her glass to her lips, gaze intent before her and her gait slightly heavier than normal, and Daniel leaned his nose down to brush through her hair.

"You're beautiful…"

"You don't have to charm me anymore, Daniel." Vala answered after taking a big gulp, sounding amused. "I know why you brought me out here."

Daniel looked out ahead of them, missing the hazy gaze she gave him. "Oh?" He had a hard time fighting the smile desperate to break free.

She pulled away from him. "You brought me out here…" Vala emphasized the sentence a bit, turning on her heels to face him a few feet away. The expression on her face almost made Daniel lose his resolve not to show his amusement. "Because I'm getting drunk and talking too much."

"I-"

Vala held up her free finger, halting him before he could even really start. "Don't tell me it isn't true – I may be tipsy, but I'm not an idiot."

This time Daniel did smile. "I wasn't going to say _that_…" He stepped up and took hold of the hand she was still holding up. "I was going to say…" He wrapped that arm around his waist and then encircled hers with both of his. "You talk too much regardless."

She squinted up at him, feigning menace. "I can still hurt you."

"But you won't." Daniel replied smugly.

"Oh, and why is that?" Vala asked.

Leaning his head down, Daniel rested their foreheads together. "Because you love me too much."

His words broke her resolve to be indignant about the whole situation. Vala grinned again and leaned up to place a kiss to his lips. "Why do you have to be so smart, huh?"

"It's necessary to keep up with you." He quipped. She smiled her own smug smile at that, and a comfortable almost silence encompassed them. It didn't last long.

"Do you hear that?" Vala whispered, awe and excitement building in her voice.

Daniel listened for a moment. First there were sounds of the crickets nestled in the bushes, and a stray bird calling out. Then he knew he was hearing what she wanted him to hear. The soft splashing and babbling of a garden fountain. "It's a fountain."

She pulled away from him, that mischievous smile of hers shining in the moonlight. "I know." Before Daniel could stop her, Vala was sauntering off quickly in the direction of the water. Rolling his eyes, but smiling all the while, Daniel sprinted to catch up. When he found her, she was sitting on the large stone side of the fountain, concentrating on getting her shoes off.

"Vala, what are you doing?" He asked with a touch of exasperation for good measure.

"What does it look like I'm doing, silly?" Vala dropped her shoes dramatically to the cobbled walkway and looked at him while she stood up. He noted she was swaying a little more than she had been before. The mischievous grin was still there. "I'm gonna get in the fountain."

Daniel shoved his hands in his pockets. "Oh, you are?" He smiled despite himself, raising his eyebrows.

"Yes." Vala replied with the simplicity of the slightly intoxicated. She carefully turned towards the round stone pool of water, with a manmade waterfall taking up its center. Picking up her glass, which she'd put on the wall she'd just been sitting on, Vala took a decent drink. Then she put the glass back down extra carefully, and ambled her way over the wall and into the calf deep water.

Daniel could merely watch at first, enjoying the sight of her being her carefree and exciting self. He knew he probably should've told her no and pulled her out, but he didn't have the heart to ruin her fun. He knew she'd probably been just as bored inside as he had. And beside – she was just too cute when tipsy and set free.

"Aren't you coming?" Vala used her best whining plea. She stared at Daniel, pouting characteristically, and he stared right back. "Daniel…"

Grinning and shaking his head, Daniel bent down and took off his expensive shoes. Picking them up, he walked over to the fountain and deposited them by hers. With slightly more grace than she'd had, he stepped over the low wall and into the water. The water soaked partway up his suit pants, which he hadn't bothered to roll up.

He moved over to her, where she was kicking water around playfully. She stumbled mid- kick and he caught her in his arms, wrapping her in a loving embrace. Vala giggled in that infectious way of hers and smiled up to him. Daniel couldn't help from smiling back, and he spun her around gently. Water splashed amongst the sound of their gentle laughter.

It wasn't long before they were still again, Vala leaning heavily against Daniel.

"You over the fountain?" He asked softly.

She nodded against his chest. "Yep."

Daniel chuckled. "What's say we get out then?" Vala nodded again, this time with no reply necessary. Keeping his hold on her, Daniel moved until they were both facing the edge and carefully led her toward it. She was even more unsteady trying to get over the wall this time, and Daniel easily helped her. Once Vala was on the other side, she continued her descent until she was on her hands and knees. She then proceeded to crawl a few feet from the fountain and sit down ungracefully on the cobblestone walkway.

Laughing lightly again, Daniel climbed out of the fountain and slowly stepped over to her. She threw her head back to look up at him, smiling and swaying dramatically at the same time. It was quite obvious her second glass of wine had kicked in.

"I'm drunk." Vala announced loudly, giggling at the same time.

Daniel smiled lovingly as he moved to sit before her. "I know."

"I'm sorry." It would've almost been truly remorseful sounding if she hadn't been giggling still.

He reached out and brushed the hair from her eyes. "Don't be."

Vala let out a rather loud, and pleased, giggle at his answer. Her gaze dropped down, and suddenly her eyes widened. "Your pants are all wet." She whispered loudly, looking up at him. This time he could see the genuine guilt written across her face.

"That's okay…" Daniel offered with a shrug. "They'll dry."

Relief seemed to flood her whole body, and Vala decided it was a perfect time to crawl into his lap. Well, more of a lean and fall into his lap, but Daniel didn't mind. It got her giggling again, and he really loved the sound of it.

"Why do you put up with me sometimes?" She asked once he'd maneuvered her into a more comfortable position, cradled in his crossed legs. The question was light and joking, but Daniel could hear the seriousness behind the alcohol induced curiosity.

Smiling down at her, and placing a kiss on her nose, Daniel whispered. "Because I love you too much."

_**She's the giver I wish I could be**_

It was the first mission they'd been on together since the separation. It had to be a difficult one, of course. Evacuating a planet in total seismic meltdown probably wasn't the best way to reconcile a marriage – tempers were already frayed from endless nights of arguing over the phone and hours of dealing with stuffy lawyers. Add on top of that volcanoes erupting and earthquakes disintegrating the ground beneath their feet, and Daniel was sure what was left of his fractured relationship with Vala would've been destroyed right along with good old PX7-954.

Yet, Daniel now found himself in a situation that was both foreign and familiar. He was realizing how much he truly loved this woman, how heart wrenching it would be to lose her. With every passing day and the conditions worsening, Daniel was once again aware of what it was like to be taken in by Vala – the real Vala.

They were sitting in a passageway high in the cliffs, waiting for the closest active volcano to calm down. Robert Dabruzzi, the SGC's top volcanologist, had said it would only take a few hours. Then they could lead the latest group of refugees down the mountain pass, into the valley where the gate sat waiting.

And through most of the wait so far, Daniel had been watching her. A handful of feet away from where he sat, Vala rocked one of the many children from the group. A little girl, no older than five, who had attached herself to Vala the moment they had stepped through the gate. Daniel had thought Vala wouldn't be up to the challenge, especially considering the girl had been deaf since birth.

But that didn't seem to matter – it was obvious there was a connection between them. Some silent bond that needed no words to express it. Daniel was both touched by and jealous of the little girl. He'd used to think he had that connection with Vala…

Still, he couldn't seem to tear his eyes away. The way Vala was with the child was mesmerizing, and it was a constant reminder of the gentle, tender woman he'd fallen so madly in love with.

So he sat and watched them, wishing for all the world he could turn back time and make things right with her. Daniel watched Vala point and signal, talking to the girl in her own special way. It was clear she was trying to comfort the child, ease the fear that the several earthquakes in the past hour had caused.

He felt his breath catch when he noticed the girl pull out the necklace hidden beneath Vala's dirty black shirt. It was the silver chain she'd kept her wedding ring on during missions. His suddenly burning eyes immediately found the gold band dangling at the end.

Daniel looked away a moment to glance at his own band firmly wrapped around his finger. He never took it off – even when he'd felt he hated her more than anything in the universe, he refused to remove it. He even recalled snapping at his lawyer when the man had foolishly recommended he sell it. Like he could give away the one token left from what used to be?

Looking up again, he saw Vala slip the ring onto her left hand. She was demonstrating for the girl what it was. The child was obviously enthralled by the beautiful simplicity of the ring. Her little brown eyes never seemed to leave it.

Until Vala pointed up at him, that is. Daniel froze; breathing practically stopping as her grey eyes stared at him. They were followed by the girl's, and he really hoped the flush of heat up his neck wasn't too noticeable.

He didn't breathe again until Vala looked back down at the child. And just as quickly, the air was sucked from his lungs as she curled her left hand into a fist and touched it to her chest. Daniel seriously felt he might pass out from lack of oxygen when Vala mouthed the word 'love' to the girl.

His eyes immediately went to the girl's face to see her reaction. She seemed confused. Vala didn't falter though. She leaned in and placed a soft kiss to the girl's forehead, then pulled back and mouthed 'love' once more. And again, Daniel felt his heart nearly burst as the child made her own fist against her chest and reached out to touch the ring with her free hand.

There wasn't any hesitation in Vala's actions as she removed the chain from around her neck and draped it over the child's. The girl's smile was almost enough to hide the suddenly lonely look in those grey eyes.

The child's mother came then to relieve Vala, and Daniel suddenly found himself staring into the scared gaze of his ex-wife. She stood up, and he did too. Her hand came up to rub at her neck, where the chain had been, and she slowly made her way over to him.

Tears welled in Vala's eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, and nothing came out. Vala dropped her gaze, and Daniel could see she was doing all she could to hold on to what little of her control she had left. Her hand kept rubbing at the empty space on her neck.

He wrapped her in a strong embrace, hoping to comfort the fear and loneliness out of her. Yet Vala remained quiet, never taking her hand down. It stung Daniel deeply. Even with him right before her, she felt she'd lost the last bit of him she'd had. It was the same way he felt about his own ring.

"I would _never _have been able to do that, sweetie." Daniel admitted softly in her ear. "The fact that you did... it's just…wow. You're so much stronger than me."

Vala let out a quiet sob. "No I'm not." She whispered through the stream of tears. Her hand finally came away from her neck, and she brought her entire arm up to wrap around his neck. "I can't even hold onto my wedding ring."

Daniel tightened his hold on her, feeling his own tears. He pressed his lips close to her ear. "Then I guess I'll just have to marry you again." He whispered with conviction, and then smiled as she laughed through her crying.

So he'd been wrong – the planet would fall apart, but he and Vala would be okay.

_**And the stealer of the covers**_

First thing he realized was that he was cold. It was what had woken him up, after all.

Second thing he realized, upon opening his eyes, was that it was still night time. The darkness of the room, being pitch black and all, was a definite indicator of that.

Third thing he realized was that he was cold and awake in the middle of the night because the covers which he enjoyed so much were nowhere within arm's reach. The word 'thief' bounced around in his head several times.

So Daniel rolled over. He blinked at the comforter cocoon which housed a Vala-pillar. He figured it was her rolled up in the middle for all he saw was a tuff of messy black hair plastered against the pillow.

He reached out and began to tug some of the covers back his direction. He'd barely had himself covered when the remaining cocoon moaned and tugged it all back.

Daniel groaned. "Vala, share…" He whined, trying to get his precious warmth back once more.

From within her toasty confines, Vala shook her head. "Cold." She mumbled.

"I know it's cold – that's why I want some of the covers for myself." He was cranky from being awake at too dark o-clock and from being sure his manhood would be non-existent by morning if he didn't get warm soon.

When the thieving Vala-pillar refused to surrender any of the covers, Daniel let out a frustrated sigh. "Fine!" He clambered out of bed, ignoring the 'where are you going' his nemesis called after him. Trudging down the hall, he made his way to the living room. He snatched the blanket off the couch and then trudged back to the bedroom.

He barely made it through the door.

"Don't bring that thing in here." Ah, so Vala really was in there. She was glaring at him now. "It smells."

Daniel rolled his eyes. "You're being dramatic." This time, he made another two steps into the room.

"Daniel Jackson, I swear on your life you better not bring that disgusting smelling blanket another step into this room."

His fists clenched around the blanket. Turning, he tossed it out into the hall. Then Daniel turned back and stepped over to her side of the bed. He snapped at her quickly.

The owlish look didn't fool him for a moment. "What?" Yeah, the innocent tone wasn't working either.

"Don't what me." He laughed. "Let me in there with you."

Vala scowled at him. "No."

"Yes." He argued.

"No." It seemed she wasn't budging.

"Yes." He hissed.

"No." Vala pouted. "You'll let the cold air in."

"Dammit, Vala." Daniel shook his head. This woman would surely drive him back into that white room. "If you don't let me in that comforter cocoon with you right now, I will roll you out of this bed. You'll hit your head on the nightstand and end up with a concussion, possibly brain damage. To end your suffering, they'll have to resort to a lobotomy. And you'll end up in a cold room, where you'll be wishing you'd just _shared the damn covers with me!_"

Rolling her eyes, Vala untucked the blanket from around her body. "And you call me dramatic." She sighed while holding an end open to him.

Daniel didn't hesitate to climb in. "Thank you." He quickly snuggled up against her while she tucked the blanket around them both. He nuzzled his nose into her hair, trying to warm it up.

"Lobotomy?" Vala whispered several moments later.

"Shut up." Daniel whispered back.

_**She's the picture in my wallet**_

He always tried to pick her up something when he was out of town, and she couldn't come along. It was his way of letting her know that she was always on his mind. Daniel wanted Vala to know she mattered to him because sometimes he really felt like he didn't show it enough…

He snapped at her when he knew he shouldn't, and ignored her sometimes when he knew she craved attention. Yet Vala would always look so miserable when he had to leave. Daniel always _felt_ miserable when he was away, especially when he figured he didn't treat her right when he was home.

It was a wonder how she put up with him, and buying her a souvenir was his way of showing her effort was truly appreciated. Daniel didn't know what he'd do without Vala. He'd never been able to tell her that, and he really didn't think she truly understood what she did for him.

So when he went to pay for the little stuffed bear he knew she'd love, Daniel was surprised when something fell from his wallet. Bending down to pick it up, his eyes widened some at the picture. He'd never seen it before, the beautiful photo of Vala.

Daniel brushed his thumb delicately over her smiling face, and then turned the picture over. True to form, there was a message on the back written in her tiny flowing script.

'_I don't know how you've possibly gone on this long without my gorgeous face in here. So I took the liberty of providing just that… I just wanted you to know I'm always with you, darling… know how much you need it.'_

_~V._

Smiling softly, Daniel accepted his purchase from the cashier and left the store. Standing just outside the entrance, he looked at the picture again. Vala was right – he'd needed it. He'd needed to know that she knew he loved her and always wanted her around.

Now he did.

_**My unborn children's mother.**_

"Vala, you're too big for this thing!" Daniel shouted up the plastic tunnel after her. He pulled his head out in time to see her face appear at one of the cut out holes serving as windows.

"Are you implying I'm fat?" She asked him, one eye gazing at him sideways.

Daniel sighed and gave her a look. "You know that's not what I meant…" He stared up at her seeing as she was a few feet up in the tunnel. "The sign over there says no one taller than four feet…" He trailed off as she simply rolled her eyes and crawled away.

Shaking his head, Daniel walked under the tunnel so he was on the other side of the McDonald's play place. He looked over the expanse of the giant plastic maze, trying to catch a glimpse of Vala.

He couldn't see her, but he definitely could hear her. She was playfully calling after the little girl she was pursuing. There was giggling and scrambling, and then Daniel spotted his goddaughter scramble out into the net covered area. Janet Wells backed up against the mesh wall and let out an excited squeal as Vala crawled into the space with her.

Daniel started laughing softly when Vala began to tickle the four year old, and peals of laughter filled the air. He'd been so unsure of how Janet and Vala would get along when he'd first started bringing the former space pirate with him on babysitting days. Daniel hadn't seen Vala around many children.

Of course he should've known there wouldn't be a problem. Vala was just a big kid herself usually. And Janet… well, Daniel was starting to guess his goddaughter liked _her_ more than him these days. It was understandable - he was boring compared to the ball of fiery energy that was his girlfriend.

As the still giggling pair crawled deeper into the play place, Daniel took a seat at the nearest table. Like it had the last several times they'd babysat Janet, his mind began to conjure up images. Vala with a swollen tummy, practically glowing with excitement. A newborn cradled in her arms. Flashes of happy little faces while Vala chased after their children. The images were always different – sometimes they had brown hair and grey eyes, sometimes black and blue. Occasionally it was mixed.

Not that it really mattered how their children would look – he was sure they would be as beautiful as their mother. What mattered was that Daniel now _could_ see himself having children with Vala. He was beginning to want it more than anything. He wanted to see her with kids of her own, kids that he helped her make.

He never imagined he would be able to even think about having kids again – not after Sha're. But there he sat, listening to a woman he'd never imagined he'd love as much as he did, planning a future he never pictured he'd want again.

Daniel looked up as Janet came shooting out of the slide, Vala right behind her. The pair staggered over to him, giggling and out of breath. Vala threw herself down in his lap, and he 'oomph'ed playfully. Janet bounced in place, the endless energy of a child clearly showing.

"Let's go again!" She emphasized the almost-command by tugging on Vala's hand.

"Oh hunny, I just couldn't." Vala replied dramatically, throwing her arms around Daniel's neck. "I think it's time Daniel gets some of my attention." She leaned towards Janet some. "He _is_ my boyfriend, you know."

Daniel put on his best charming smile, wrapping an arm around Vala. Janet pouted at their antics.

"You can come too, Uncle Daniel!" The little girl countered, this time taking one of Daniel's hands and tugging on it.

He shook his head. "I can't fit in there, sweetie." Daniel nodded towards the play place. "You go ahead, though. No need for you not to play."

Janet looked at him skeptically for a moment. "Okay." She finally said dramatically, turning on her heels and dashing back to the tunnel that would lead her back into the maze.

"She is so cute." Vala sighed, resting her head against Daniel's.

Daniel squeezed her closer. "Yes she is." He turned his head and placed a light kiss against Vala's cheek. "I'm sure our kids will be just as cute as Janet, if their mother is anything to go by."

Pulling away some, Vala gave him a look of surprise. "Our…kids?" She practically squeaked.

"Unless you don't…" Daniel started, but was cut off by Vala placing the softest of kisses against his lips.

"I do." She answered on a desperate whisper before giving him another, more desperate kiss. "I really, _really_ do."

Daniel smiled then, nodding. "Okay…" He rested his forehead against hers, bringing his hand to the back of her head to tangle his fingers in her hair.

"Okay." He said again, this time with the barest of whispers. And then _he_ kissed _her,_ desperate to bring that future within reach.

_**She's the hand that I'm holding when I'm on my knees and praying**_

They shoved him down hard onto his knees, and it took all that was left of Daniel's willpower not to wince. He'd made it this far without budging an inch and he'd be damned if they'd break him now.

"You will pray to the almighty gods." Thestos, the arrogant leader of the rebellious group he had failed to infiltrate, demanded loudly.

Daniel glared up at him defiantly. "Keep telling yourself that."

It earned him a hard backhand to his already broken cheek. He spit out a mouthful of blood while his head was still turned, and then returned his attention to Thestos. Daniel failed to notice the figure step into the large chambers behind where Thestos stood.

"You will pray to the almighty gods." The pompous bastard repeated.

And again, Daniel channeled his inner O'Neill. "No, you see… praying really isn't my thing. You could ask any of your precious gods…" A smile Jack would've killed to see graced Daniel's lips. "Oh wait, they're all_ dead_."

This time, the back talk got the tip of a knife pressed dangerously close to his throat. Still, Daniel ventured a sort of laugh.

"That didn't work before…" He was so sure Jack would be proud of him now as he smiled again. "What makes you think it'll work now?"

Thestos laughed this time. "You are correct." Standing back up from where he'd knelt down before Daniel, he fiddled with the knife. "It seems you are quite resistant to torture." He said conversationally to the watching crowd as he circled around Daniel.

Then he was at Daniel's side, knelt down once again. "But I'm sure you know not _all_ torture is physical." Thestos stood up once more and snapped his fingers. Two of his henchmen brought forth a stumbling figure.

When the hood obscuring the person's face was ripped back, Daniel found his willpower put to the test again. Dammit, he'd been hoping Mitchell had managed to get away. From the looks of it, Cameron had been having just as much fun as he had. Maybe even a little more. Fears for Sam's well being began to bubble up from the pit of Daniel's stomach.

"You're accomplice here has been just as forthcoming as you have, my friend." Thestos strolled up to Cameron, gripping the younger man by the face hard. It obviously caused a lot of pain and the groan Cam let out showed just how much of _his_ willpower he had left.

Daniel sent a glare to Thestos when he looked back at him.

"But unlike you, this one does not possess the vast stores of knowledge about the gods." He began to pet Cameron, and it made Daniel's blood boil. "The only reason he's been kept alive is to ensure you _will_ do as we say."

"Now you will pray to the gods…" Thestos repeated yet again, this time emphasizing the point by removing his gun from the holster at his leg. He aimed it at Cam's head. "Or I will kill him."

Before Daniel could say anything, a slow clap from Thestos' high chair drew everyone's attention in its direction. The blood seemed to rush in his ears at the sight of her, sprawled across the chair like she owned it.

Vala didn't look at him at first, but his captor instead. "Thestos, love… as glorious as a public massacre would be." She pushed herself up from the chair nimbly, but Daniel could see how delicately she handled herself. Even her stroll over to Thestos was more measured than usual.

Of course it was – she was fucking pregnant! That's why she hadn't been permitted to come on this mission. Her condition was too delicate to be tried against fate. What the _hell_ did she think she was doing?! Vala was putting herself and the baby in danger.

If he'd been seeing red before, Daniel didn't know what color he saw as Vala didn't hesitate to place a passionate kiss to Thestos' lips. Rational thinking kicked in just before he succumbed to jealousy, and he noticed even as she kissed him Vala was working the gun out of Thestos' hand.

"There are more _subtle…_" Daniel watched her give Thestos a look of significance. "Ways to get people to succumb to your will." She stepped back and emphasized her greatest assets, which had already begun to swell from the pregnancy. "If you'll allow, of course."

Thestos smiled, holding his hand out towards Daniel. "Please, my lovely Vala. What a better way to honor this surprise visit than to witness my flower at work!"

She nodded in agreement, and then strolled over to Daniel. He didn't look at her as she circled around him, coming to kneel at his side. He tried to tell himself it was out of protection for her not to blow her cover, but Daniel really knew it was because he was beyond pissed.

"I know you're probably extremely mad at me right now." Vala whispered in his ear. Daniel snorted softly – how insightful she was! "But when Sam came through the gate saying you and Cameron were captured, there wasn't any debate as to who needed to fix this."

Oh, so Sam did escape. Good – the moment Vala got them out of this mess and back through the gate, Daniel would be sure to hunt down his new least favorite Colonel. Of course that'd be after he locked Vala in their quarters permanently.

His scowl became deeper. At least it looked like he didn't like what Vala was saying. Too bad it really was true dissatisfaction.

"Now I have a history with Thestos." Vala continued. 'No shit' sat on the tip of Daniel's tongue. "I know his M.O., and he _will_ kill Cameron if you don't do as he asks. And even if you do, he'll probably kill him anyway."

Daniel couldn't keep quiet anymore. He finally looked at Vala. "So I'm fucked if I do, and fucked if I don't." God, why did she have to look so damn amused? "And now you've put yourself and our unborn child in the middle of it!" His whispered words were low, but harsh nonetheless.

She placed her hand on his cheek, looking as seductive as possible. "Daniel, nothing will happen to me or this baby, okay? And I promise I will let you rant at me all you like once we're back home." Vala moved the hand up to his hair and yanked his head back. This time he did wince.

"But right now, you're going to have to pray…" She said as she looked down into his gaze. His eyes widened and he opened his mouth to protest.

Vala cut him off by placing a finger to his lips. "Do this and I have a better chance of saving Cameron. Don't do it, and we'll have the death of a dear friend on our hands." She leaned down so only he could see her face. "Now you need to trust me, and you need to pray."

"How do you expect me to pray with you yanking the hair out of my head?" He said back in an annoyed growl of a whisper.

She smiled and released his head. Kneeling down once more, she pressed her lips close to his ear. Then Vala began to tell him what to say.

Daniel repeated the words aloud, hating the accomplished look on Thestos' face. This was going against everything he'd ever been trained to do – one never gave into the enemy like this. Vala was making him betray the personal code Jack had instilled in him since day one.

He felt her hand encircle around one of his tied behind his back, and squeeze gently. Daniel closed his eyes and squeezed back as best he could, still repeating what she was telling him. Vala was leading him blindly into territory he knew nothing about, and yet Daniel trusted her like he always did.

For his sake and Mitchell's, for her sake and for the sake of their child, he had to.

_**She's the answer to my prayer**_

Sliding down the outside wall of his house, Daniel took a swig from the bottle in his hand. The bottle was half gone already and he knew he should stop. He'd surely make himself sick if he kept going.

But Daniel was just drunk enough to not care. The sickness would be a welcome feeling compared to the emptiness he'd felt for the past five years. It always was since it would make him forget, even if the forgetfulness was short-lived, of the gaping hole in his heart.

Dammit, when did it go away for good? How many years would he have to drink himself into a stupor on this particular day before the loneliness from the wake of his wife's death would fade? He was tired of shying away from fun and love, and he wanted his damn life back.

Staring up at the night sky, Daniel decided he was tired of being quiet about it too.

"Hey you up there!" He said loudly, not even feeling a bit foolish. "I know I'm not your most favorite person, nor your biggest fan. All the death and destruction caused in your name makes me sick, but I'm willing to put that aside just this once."

Daniel looked down at the bottle between his legs. "I've never asked for much, if anything at all. But now, I just…I feel like I'm at the end of my rope with this one and I need some help."

He rested his head back against the hard brick and looked back at the stars. "Give me a sign… throw me a bone and tell me I'm gonna be alright. Because right now…" He felt the traitorous tears coming to the surface. "I really don't know if I'm gonna be. Year after year, it gets easier to be without her, but the loneliness gets harder to bear."

"And the fear – shit, the fear of getting close and losing someone again is keeping me from loving anyone new!" Daniel paused to take another drink from the bottle, holding up his finger to the sky like there really was someone there.

Rolling his eyes, Daniel shook his head after lowering the bottle. "Anywho, that's about it. I just want you to send me some kind of… I don't know… angel or something. I _need_ an answer to the question that has become my life."

Sudden anger had his voice raising. "And don't I deserve this _one_ thing, after all I've done for the good of people? I know I'm not a saint or anything, but can't you just give this to me?"

Daniel laughed out his next part pathetically. "I'm a good guy and I _really_ don't want to finish last here."

He sat there for several hours after, waiting for his sign. It wasn't until the sun started to rise did Daniel push himself up the wall and stagger back inside, leaving the empty bottle discarded on the porch.

All thoughts of his single prayer were lost in the haze of the inevitable sickness and hangover, and the business of work and the joys that his friends and job brought him in the following weeks. Like always, his one night of self pity and the constant feeling of loneliness were buried away… along with that prayer.

He'd almost forgotten it completely by the time he found himself strapped to the captain's chair of the Prometheus.

But it came back the moment his eyes fell upon the beautiful face of Vala Mal Doran for the first time. Daniel knew then that someone had been listening that night, and the stunning creature before him was his answer.

_**And she's the song that I'm playing**_

Daniel slowly opened his eyes, staring into the darkness of their quarters. He sniffed loudly, trying to clear his blocked nose some. It was a futile attempt, much like the last several had been.

Moaning pathetically, he buried his face into his pillow. He hated being sick. The constant achiness, the stuffed sinuses, the headaches, the coughing – it all sucked. He was hungry, but didn't feel like eating. He was tired beyond all belief, but couldn't sleep.

Even worse than being sick was being sick and alone. Turning over in bed, Daniel reached out and snagged the pillow from the empty side. He pulled it close, both enjoying and hating the coldness of it. It felt good against his fevered face, but it reminded him once again that Vala wasn't there.

She was off world, doing what he would've been if he wasn't sick. While he was proud of her for being able to take the ball under such short notice, Daniel was annoyed that Vala wasn't around. He missed her, even more so because he was sick.

Pulling in a deep breath, he inhaled her signature scent. Closing his eyes, he buried his face into the pillow. Daniel imagined it was really Vala in his arms, that she was really there and whole and his to hold forever. His fantasy only lasted a few minutes, after which he realized that it didn't compare to the real thing.

The real thing would be holding him against her side, brushing gentle fingers through his hair. She would ramble on about her soap operas softly, and he wouldn't care too much. As long as he got to hear her voice, a voice that would sooth away the stabbing headache behind his tired eyes.

Daniel pushed himself up grumpily, leaving Vala's pillow in a discarded awkward angle in the middle of the bed. The bed was starting to annoy him... it was too uncomfortable and too empty. He slowly climbed out of it, shuffling off towards his desk against the far wall, snagging Vala's favorite blanket along the way.

He all but collapsed into the chair with the blanket tightly wrapped around his shoulders. Sniffing loudly, Daniel ran a finger over the touchpad on his laptop. The sleeping machine came to life. The moment he was logged into Vala's account, he opened her iTunes.

A list of songs ten miles long popped up, so Daniel clicked the search box and slowly typed in the one song he wanted. He was too tired and too sick to try and scroll through the list for it. Once his choice came up, he clicked on it vigorously.

The soft, familiar melody started, and he let out a sigh. Remembering how Vala had showed him how to run the program, Daniel clicked the third button down the line of buttons at the lower left hand corner twice. Satisfied with the tiny '1' on top of the blue highlighted circling arrows, he rested his head down on crossed arms on the desk.

The lyrics washed over him in such a soothing way, helping him to bring that fantasy of her back. He could almost feel her in the room by the time the chorus started…

'_I don't know how you do what you do. I'm so in love with you. It just keeps getting better.'_

Daniel remembered back to the first time the song had made him think of Vala. It'd been just days after the extraction of Ba'al, when he'd begun to realize how much she'd meant to him. He'd been taken by an irrational feeling that he'd narrowly escaped losing her _yet_ _again, _and realized he might not get lucky anymore. It would run out sooner or later, and Daniel feared it would be sooner and he'd be too late.

So he'd done something he hadn't done in a long time – taken a chance and let himself succumb to his feelings for her. And on their first _real _date, Daniel had surprised Vala by playing this song for her and dancing her to it. The smile on her face when he'd sung the lyrics to her would be burned in his memory forever.

Smiling, Daniel let the song lead him into a light doze…

The next thing he was aware of was a cool, gentle hand brushing the hair back from his forehead. He slowly opened his eyes, and about started crying at the sight of Vala kneeling beside the chair.

"You're really here." He whispered hoarsely, reaching out a shaky hand to touch her face.

Vala took hold of his hand gently before it reached her face. "You're really sick." She said soothingly, continuing to brush her free hand through his hair. "You should be sleeping in bed, not at this desk."

Frowning, Daniel looked at the desk, and then the computer screen where iTunes sat open with the song now paused. "I couldn't sleep." He admitted sheepishly, looking back at her. "So I played the song…you know, the one I played on our first date?"

"Yeah, I know… it was playing when I came in." Vala said, laughing at the cuteness of the entire situation.

Not really hearing was she had said, Daniel leaned into her heavily and rested his head on her shoulder. "I missed you."

Vala blinked at his dramatic actions. "Okay, you need to get into bed." She manhandled him to a standing position, wrapping one of his blanket covered arms around her waist. Daniel seemed oblivious to everything but her, and Vala made a mental note to get Carolyn up there as soon as she could.

"I really, really missed you." He mumbled, his head still resting on her shoulder as she led him to the bed.

"I know, Daniel." Vala told him, settling him down onto the edge of the bed. Without any coaxing, he collapsed sideways onto the mattress.

As she swung his legs up onto the bed, tucking them under the comforter, Daniel blinked at her. He looked really sad all of a sudden. "Did you miss me?" He whispered with uncertainty.

Vala settled herself on the edge of the bed, once again running her hand over his forehead. The heat she felt coming off him concerned her. Still, she smiled down at him lovingly. "Of course I missed you, darling. Every chance I got, I thought about you."

He smiled with satisfaction. "Me too – thought about you that is." Daniel snuggled into the blanket still wrapped around his shoulders, peeking at her with one eye. "When I'm not sick anymore, we're gonna dance to that song again."

"I'd like that." Vala said, both trying to appease him so he'd get to sleep again and being truthful. She leaned in and kissed his forehead when his eyes started to close. "We'll dance to our song."

Daniel smiled sleepily. "Our song." He whispered as he drifted off to sleep with her hand still brushing through his hair.

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**Reviews are definitely appreciated!**


	3. Part 3

**Spoilers/Warnings: **I don't think there's any spoilers in this part, actually. It is a rather short part, after all...

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_**She's the voice I love to hear**_

"There was a Daniel in here when I left…" Vala's disembodied voice floated his direction from somewhere beyond the wall of boxes surrounding him.

Daniel smiled even though she couldn't see it. "I'm over here." He called back to her, continuing to sort the pile of books into their appropriate stacks.

Her footsteps into the room were a dull thud across the carpet. "Now there's talking boxes…" The humor and contentment was evident in her tone, growing louder as she neared.

He looked up at the single opening in his box fortress just as she poked her head into it. The smile he flashed this time was all for her to see.

"There you are." Vala smiled in return, practically gliding over to where he sat surrounded by his books. She gracefully and easily avoided stepping on any as she floated into a crouch at his side.

The happiness he felt radiating from her pleased him to no end. It only intensified when Vala leaned in to give him the lightest kiss on the lips.

"I think I'm done for the night." She told him, her smile turning into a tired one.

There was a question in her eyes that Daniel picked up immediately. "I think I've got a good hour left in me." He informed her, gesturing to the hurricane of books on the floor.

She nodded. "Okay, then I'm gonna take a shower, wash all this horrible sweat and dust off."

Reaching up, Daniel fiddled with one limp strand of hair that had fallen from her messy ponytail. "You know I don't mind a little sweat and dust." He winked at her. "I am an archaeologist and all."

Vala rolled her eyes. "Yes, well, I'm not." She playfully swatted his hand away. "So I'm going to take a nice hot shower and get clean, then snuggle up in our unassembled bed and wait to be cuddled." She gave him a skeptical look. "Archaeologists are prone to cuddling, yes?"

"Very prone." He nodded enthusiastically.

She smiled again. "Good…" Standing up, Vala brushed an affectionate hand through his hair as she went. "Try not to lose track of time, okay? You know how impatient I get…"

Daniel laughed, focus already back on his books. "Oh, I definitely do." Even as she left to take her shower, he could still feel the joyful glow she seemed to be leaving everywhere these days. He let his thoughts linger on it, pulling his own joy from that simple knowledge.

He only managed to sort a few more books when he found one that he normally kept in the bedroom. Figuring it'd been placed in the box in the rush of moving, he stood and began to maneuver his way out of the cardboard maze that had become his new office.

Once Daniel had made it to the hallway, he continued on to their bedroom. He was greeted with more boxes and the untidiness that accompanied moving into a new house. Realizing it would be a while before he could place the book in its rightful home, Daniel decided the dresser could be a temporary resting place.

He moved over to the wooden dresser against the wall, placing the book down in the one empty spot between boxes. Then he paused, his attention drifting up towards the bathroom just to the right of the dresser. Drifting out through the slightly ajar door, past the steam and the sound of the running shower, was a sound so beautiful it made his heart ache.

Vala was singing.

It wasn't singing out of boredom, or because she had a song stuck in her head. It wasn't a song too upbeat or melancholy. It was just a simple and sweet melody of words that seemed to melt Daniel's insides to butter.

He stepped up against the small section of wall between the dresser and the door, resting his cheek against it. The smile that graced his lips couldn't be helped. She was such a beautiful singer…

Daniel turned slightly, sliding down the wall and pulling his knees up. This was something he knew he couldn't just walk away from. He didn't want to. He wanted to hear every angelic note she could make because it meant that she was relaxed enough to let her inhibitions fall away, even if she thought only she would know.

Her singing told him she was happy – sincerely at ease. Looking around the hazard that was their room, Daniel felt a sudden surge of selfish pride. That was why she was so happy. He'd not only taken the next step in their relationship by getting a house for them both…

Daniel had given her a home.

He'd never expected her to give anything in return. The love she had for him was more than enough since he knew he wasn't the easiest person to love. But this… hearing the joy in her voice as she sang was better than any payback he'd never imagined.

He sat and waited, listening all the while, until the shower switched off. Then Daniel silently rose from the floor and made his leave of their bedroom, not wanting Vala to know he'd heard her. That would be a secret he'd keep to himself for as long as he could. If it meant he'd get to hold onto the knowledge of her happiness and the memory of that voice, then yes – Daniel would happily keep it.

_**And someday when I'm ninety, she's that wooden rocking chair I want rocking right beside me**_

It takes him all of two seconds to realize Jack is giving him one of those looks. The type of look that sets Daniel's 'oh shit-o-meter' pinging warnings. Jack is thinking…

Which of course takes his mind off of Vala, who just informed him she and Sam were taking a hike around the cabin property. This annoys him because he _likes_ thinking about Vala. And Daniel knows the annoyance is what Jack is going for because it gets his undivided attention on the older man.

"Yes?" He finally says to his still-staring friend, trying to put menace into his voice to ward Jack away from dangerous waters.

Doesn't work. Never has. "So you two in for the long haul?"

Again, it takes no time at all for Daniel to figure out what Jack is referring to. "Do I ever have any plans of letting her go?" He waits for the General's quick nod. "Not a chance in hell."

Jack grins, and the 'oh shit-o-meter' goes from pinging to blaring. "Good." The older man settles comfortably into his overstuffed chair and sips from his beer. "'Cause this place is going to you both when I kick it."

As much as Jack referring to his death scares Daniel, so does the idea that he's already making plans about what to do with his important stuff. "Jack, don't." He shakes his head, toying with the label on his own beer bottle.

"Why not?" His friend questions calmly. It's both soothing and grating – the O'Neill way. "Let's face it Daniel, I'm getting up there. As much as we'd both like to believe it, I won't be around forever."

"Jack…" Daniel's always had a problem with this sort of thing.

Jack leans forward, depositing his bottle on the table separating them. "Yeah, I know you don't like this crap." He clasps his hands together and gives Daniel a meaningful look. "So I'll just get down to it – there's life ahead of you with her, Daniel. Sure you're not that young anymore, but you're not old either."

He watches his friend, wanting to say something and not knowing what to. Jack rarely makes speeches like this, so Daniel knows he needs to keep quiet and let him speak his piece.

"And since I know I won't be around to see it to the end, I'm covering all the bases." Jack picks his beer back up and settles back again. "This is a place you want to grow old with someone with. I've missed out, so I'm making sure you don't."

Daniel stares into thoughtful brown eyes for a long few minutes, letting it sink in. When he speaks, all the emotion of having 'Jack' and 'death' in the same thought has been safely tucked away. "So you see me and Vala, here…when we're old and grey?"

Jack's grin eases them out of those dangerous waters. "Oh yeah. Knitted sweaters, little old people glasses – rocking chairs!" He points like it's a whole new idea.

The younger man nods like Jack's gone crazy…again. "Yeah, that's really gonna happen!"

"Don't tell me you can't see it."

The girls decide then to come back into the cabin, giggling all the way. Sam heads into the kitchen, and Vala breezes over to Daniel with that grin of hers. The 'oh shit-o-meter' starts up again.

"Margaritas…" Is all she says before she lays a kiss on his lips. "Twister." Is all she says after while practically skipping to the kitchen to join her fellow troublemaker. Daniel's eyes trail her the entire way until she's out of sight.

He turns a reluctant smile on Jack a moment later. "Okay, I admit… I can see the rocking chairs." Daniel pushes himself up and winks at his friend. "But that's only when we're ninety and too worn out to play strip twister."

Jack points at him. "But you can see them."

Daniel smiles outright and nods. "Yeah…" He turns at the sound of giggling from the kitchen. "Yeah, I think I can now."

_**Every day that passes, I only love her more**_

Even the little things had bothered him at first. Sometimes he often wondered in the beginning how he was able to see past them to the fragile soul hidden underneath. He would get snappish over every minor thing she did, and yet she would simply shrug it off and continue doing whatever it was that annoyed him.

He'd gotten used to it eventually. They were just the types of things one had to get used to around her. She_ was_ annoying and was _more_ than aware of the fact. So he'd learned to accept the annoyances for what they were – a part of her.

And then one day, during a pretty monotonous briefing, Daniel realized the very things he'd always considered annoyances were the very things that he loved most.

The way she sped through the tv channels without waiting to see what was on any station.

How she would always finish off pretty much his every meal – from the fries to whatever he was drinking. Somehow the last scraps or sips always found their way into her mouth and not his.

The ramblings she made to herself, _and only herself_, while he was trying to figure out something "obscure and boring." Whether it was her ranting over her soaps or muttering on about what the latest spotlight hogging celebrity had worn to one of those award shows she loved to watch, she only would talk to herself about it.

Or popping and chewing her gum obnoxiously at the most inappropriate moments.

Because the channel speeding always led to her stopping on some history documentary in defeat, ending with her passing out and drooling all over his shirt while snuggling up to him on the couch.

Because her eating the rest of his food meant he got the rest of the ice cream when she was too full to finish it.

Because the rambling became a soothing background noise, and helped with the always encroaching headache he got when doing the obscure and boring stuff. Plus, it let him know he wasn't alone, even when he thought he needed to be.

Because while she popped and played with her gum across from him at the boring briefing, he'd realized how much he'd come to love seeing her. How much he'd come to love…loving her.

And the girl-like grin Vala tossed him while wrapping the gum around her finger convinced Daniel it would only grow more with each passing day…and each new found annoyance.

_**Yeah, she's the one I'd lay down my own life for**_

The world always seemed to reduce to a dreamlike place, Daniel mused, after being injured. Maybe it had something to do with the life slowly ebbing from the wound around his abdomen, or maybe it had something to do with the morphine they'd pumped into him the first chance they got. Either way, the tree tops whizzing across his hazy field of vision and the rain soaking him through held no sway.

All that penetrated his receding thoughts was the knowledge that he'd done the right thing. He could feel it in every part of himself, even if those parts weren't presenting much feeling of any kind right then.

He'd always known he'd sacrifice himself for those he loved, but never before has it felt so right…so _perfect_. Because nothing was more perfect than her being _protected_.

"Perfect." He mumbled deliriously, closing his eyes to ease the approach of the inevitable darkness. Not much filtered through after that. Not even her desperate pleas for him to hang on.

The world didn't come back for some time, it seemed. And still, he felt an eternal peace because he'd known what he'd done was what he'd needed to do.

The image of her sitting at his bedside being the first thing he saw when he woke just made it set in that much more.

"Hi." Daniel grinned dopily at her.

Vala glared at him. "Don't you 'hi' me…" Her eyes were heated with anger and desperate with worry at the same time. "You almost _died_, you know?"

He showed no regret because he felt none. "But you'd still be alright, so it's okay."

Jumping up from her chair, causing it to crash to the floor, Vala took his face in her hands. The grip was both forceful and achingly gentle all at once. "I don't care how I'd be. You wouldn't be here, and there is _nothing _okay with that."

For the first time, Daniel couldn't say he felt remorse at the tears that leaked from her grey-eyed gaze just inches from his. "Promise me you will _never_ take a bullet for me again, or I walk right here and now."

It took him a moment to reply. "I promise." He whispered with as much reassurance as he could muster. Daniel accepted the kiss she placed on his lips gently in acceptance, and watched her silently move to pick up her discarded chair.

And here she'd always thought he couldn't tell a decent lie.

----

**There is only one part left to this fic, though I haven't started on it yet so it might be a little while before it gets posted. Reviews are definitely appreciated!**


	4. Part 4

**Spoilers/Warnings: **Spoilers for Avalon P.1, Avalon P.2, Memento Mori, and the SGA ep. The Lost Tribe.

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_**And she's everything I ever wanted**_

His hand trailed the length of her body, from shoulder to thigh. Her skin was warm and damp under his touch, the remaining evidence of what they'd only finished doing a few minutes before.

Minutes. Mere minutes and he was already craving her again. The feel of her under his caress was quenching the thirst, but it would only go so far. She was intoxicating. Like a drug and he was once again seeking a fix.

Placing his hand flat on her stomach, he pulled her back against him. His mouth found her neck, kissing it lazily. He was beyond just touching. Needed more…needed to satisfy the _need_.

She sighed and shifted. He groaned. She smelled and tasted of sex and so much more and he couldn't get enough. If this was addiction, he'd gladly succumb to it. Too long he'd gone without. He wanted to be addicted…wanted to have her all to himself.

His hand on her stomach slowly drifted down, and she let out a pleased little laugh. He smiled at it, high off of her everything. Stopping his hand just short of its destination, he began to stroke and caress. She whimpered and squirmed.

"Such a tease…" Her voice was rough and demanding, exotic as always. She rubbed against him purposely and his touching faltered with the movement. "Stop tormenting me."

He grinned, kissing her neck again and obeying her order. The hand went the rest of the way down, and she shuddered when it hit the mark. "Oh, Daniel…"

Daniel pulled in a deep breath, her pleasured cry seeming to echo in his ears as he opened his eyes. He was greeted by darkness, his own ragged breathing and racing heartbeat pounding in his ears.

Closing his eyes again, Daniel swallowed hard. A dream…_another_ dream just like all the rest. His wild mind conjuring fantasies to compensate for involuntary abstinence. Shifting against cool sheets clinging to his sweat-soaked skin, he groaned.

He needed relief.

Carefully, Daniel extracted himself from the sheets and made his way over to the bathroom. Closing the door, he leaned back against it and reached into his pajama pants. He willed the images from his dream to return, screwing up his face in concentration as he got down to business.

The feel of her warm flesh. Her smell and taste. Her laugh, her voice…she'd called his name. _His_ name, so needy and wanting. Want…want. God, he wanted her so much he was jonesing.

Daniel let out a sound of relief as pleasant release washed over him. He tried to find some joy in it, but like all the nights before it was unfulfilling. Just another part of the torture that had become his nights alone.

Shakily, he extracted his hand and took the few steps over to the sink. As he set to work washing his hands, he let out a sigh. This was becoming a habit, one that he couldn't seem to stop. No matter what he did or tried, the dreams kept coming.

Turning the faucet off, Daniel shook his hands and then ran them over his face and through his hair. He took a glance at himself in the mirror. Damn, he looked as exhausted as he felt. Night after night of fantasizing was taking its toll.

But beyond the sleep deprivation and self-embarrassment was something more. An almost wild look of need shined out faintly. The burning want from his dreams sprung to life, and Daniel closed his eyes for a moment. He licked his lips, pulling in a deep breath and hoping it would bring her scent along with it.

Part of him wanted to cry out. This was getting out of hand. Now he was feeling the need for her in his waking mind and body. Insanity and too many years alone had gotten the better of him, it seemed.

Still, he was practically dying to hold her. Feel her. Have her. A dull ache across his entire body. The urgency for release was gone, but not the urge.

_Stop tormenting me._

Daniel opened his eyes at the remembered words. He stared at his reflection, watching a look of understanding and determination come to it. There was only one way to make it stop.

Pushing off the counter, Daniel quickly snagged a shirt off his desk chair while heading for the door. He swung it open, leaving it that way as he continued across the hall to the quarters on the other end. His knock on the door was loud and desperate.

Daniel crossed his arms, resting his shoulder against the wall just beside the door. He thought he heard noise on the other end, but couldn't be sure. Anxiously, he started to bounce a little.

When the door finally opened, it revealed her to be sleepy and tousled. _Gorgeous_, he thought. _Fucking gorgeous_. The burning ache doubled and Daniel had to fight the orders his mind was issuing. _Take her. This is what you want. Take her now_.

"Daniel?" Vala mumbled, squinting tiredly at him. She leaned heavily on the door. "Is everything alright?"

Still bouncing, Daniel dropped his gaze to the floor and licked his lips. "We need to talk." He said, sounding as desperate as he felt. His eyes slowly moved upward to look into hers. They stared back, penetrating and searching. Finding exactly what he'd hope they would.

Vala let out a small sigh, sounding so much like a release. "Okay." She whispered and stepped aside to create a space for him to come in. Daniel didn't hesitate to enter, feeling every bit like the junkie he'd seemed to become.

He didn't care. Wanting Vala too much made caring impossible.

_**And everything I need**_

Vala's been avoiding me all day. Alright, in truth she hasn't really been avoiding me. She's taken care of me like she has been doing since I came home messed up from that Atlantis excursion. You know, helping me around the house, making sure I don't fall and ruin all the hard work Dr. Lam put in to patching me up.

But that's all it's been. Her usual flirt, which she has toned down since my homecoming, is almost nonexistent. She's only around when it's time for some more medication or if I need help with something or other. Then she's back off cleaning or whatever she's been doing around my house for the past two weeks.

I'm thinking it's got something to do with the kiss. The one I gave her last night without much warning. I couldn't help myself. She's been so wonderful since I came back, and she'd put so much work into that dinner, which came out amazingly. Maybe springing something on her like that while slightly loopy on pain meds wasn't the best idea. Think she might have gotten the wrong impression.

I wasn't messing with her. Honest. I'd truly gotten the overwhelming urge to kiss her right at that moment. I've had a lot of time to think about things since being laid up, and she's been the prominent feature of such thoughts. Love has too. I was hoping the kiss would've shown that.

Now I'm just hoping she'll stay in the room long enough so I can explain myself. Tell her what she's come to mean to me.

She finally glides into the room, clearly avoiding my gaze as she sets to work cleaning up the collection of dishes that has gathered throughout the course of the day. I reach out when she's close enough, brushing my fingers across her back lightly.

"Hey, can we talk?" Somewhere deep inside, it hurts when she tenses under my touch.

Vala gives a little shake of her head. "Maybe later, darling." She continues to pile dishes into her hands. "Still too much to do, and not enough day left to do it in."

I close my eyes. "Vala." My voice gets a fraction louder, and I hope it'll be enough. It still hurts to do anything too strenuous, even raise my voice. Opening my eyes, I see she has chosen to ignore me completely this time and is about to make a break for the kitchen.

"Vala!" I have to close my eyes again and wince. Yeah, that one definitely hurt. When I open them back up, she's standing there watching me. I can see she's debating whether to see if I'm okay, or if she should keep ignoring me. I'm making her choose the first option.

"Come here, please." I say it nicely, but use a tone that means business. Thank you, Jack, for teaching me such a _lovely _skill. Vala gets the message and moves back over to the couch. I shift over, wincing. It's almost insulting when Vala doesn't sit down right away.

"Sit." Great, now I'm ordering her around like a dog. It's annoying me having to talk to her like this. She _always_ has to make it more difficult than needed. Doesn't mean I care for her any less, of course.

Vala sits, though she's clinging to the dishes like a life preserver. "Can you put those down?" No more demanding needed on that one. As she sits back up after depositing her dish tower on the table, I tuck some lose strands of hair behind her ear.

"Now talk to me."

She doesn't look at me when she does. "There's nothing to talk about."

Oh great – she wants to be difficult. I sure have a way of picking them, don't I? "The hell there isn't. You've been avoiding me all day."

That gets her attention. She looks at me like I've hit her. Can't say I prefer it. "I have not! I have helped you when you needed it and have taken care of you, _just_ like I've done every day since you've been home."

"Taken care of me, yes." I say. "Talked to me…" I reach out and tilt her chin up so she's looking at me. "No."

Some of the disbelief leaves her eyes, shadowed by an honest look. Now there's something I do prefer. "I'm scared of what I'll say if I do." She admits, and I guess she knows I'm about to ask why because she continues on. "Because you're sick and I don't want to upset you."

I roll my eyes. There she goes, thinking I'm still too fragile to handle things again. "I'm recovering, not sick." I look back at her. "I can take whatever you have to say. I'd prefer you tell me rather than not speak to me at all."

Vala keeps her mouth shut now, shaking her head. Again, her eyes won't meet mine. I close my eyes and take a much needed, if painful, deep breath. "Is this about last night?" I ask while letting the air out and opening my eyes again.

She nods, and then I do as well. And against my better judgment, I push myself up into a sitting position. Hurts like hell, and Vala can tell because she's glaring at me in that 'what the hell are you doing' way.

I'm sure I look like I'm in a lot of pain, which I am, as I say, "I don't regret last night."

"I can't believe that." Vala says back on a whisper. It's almost like I can hear her heart breaking along with it.

Yeah, that's stopping immediately. "Fine." I lean in so our lips are mere inches from touching. "Maybe you can trust this, then." Then I'm kissing her again, just like the night before. Except this time there's no drug-induced glee. No, this time the glee is all natural.

She's pulling away much sooner than I had wanted. "I think the pain is making you delusional." There's a hint of humor in her voice.

"I think you need to shut up and kiss me." I say before leaning back in for more. There's no pulling away this time. I like it. Vala really gets into it and I try my best. But this whole pain thing is a bit of a mood-killer.

"Son of bitch…" Oops, hadn't meant to wheeze that out loud. Doesn't matter now. Vala's obviously aware I'm hurting, _really_ hurting, because she starts to gently push me back down to a laying position.

Her eyes are regretful as they look into mine. "You need to rest." She gently brushes her hand through my hair and _god_ even that hurts. Vala sighs because I can't seem to hide my pain anymore and moves to get up. I latch onto her hand before she can fill it full of dishes.

I give her the sincerest look I can manage. "I need you." Damn the reflex to say nothing. She needs to know I meant it all, pain or not.

At least she smiles down at me. "You need your meds."

"No." I grimace and then frown. "Well, yes…but that's not the point now." I squeeze her hand. "All I could think of when I got zapped by that thing was how I'd be leaving you behind. It hurt more than the pain to know I'd be dying without you because I _need_ you. I'll need you until my last dying breath, whenever that is. Do you understand that?"

Vala remains silent, just staring at me. I can't decide if she thinks I'm crazy or if she believes me. Not really good on top of the pain. I'm getting aggravated again.

"Dammit, Vala, do you understand?" I snap at her.

She doesn't even flinch. "I understand." Her eyes get that placating look. "Now will you let go of my hand so I can get you some medication? Or do you want to continue to suffer? Not that I don't appreciate your romance…"

I groan and drop her hand, burying my face in my arm. She gets it. The teasing is back, so she's gotta get it. Great, confessed myself and now I'll never hear the end of it. I don't even know if she really appreciates what I've just-

I flinch at her voice so close to my ear. "Thank you." It's the honest to god sincerest voice I have ever heard her use. I turn my head to look at Vala, to find her smiling softly at me.

"It's nice to know someone needs me." She says before leaning in to give me the softest kiss imaginable. Damn, I've been a goner since these lips first touched mine. Needed? Hell, Vala's wanted, needed, loved, and so many other words that fail me in this instance.

That whole glee feeling? Yeah, that's back again.

_**I talk about her; I go on and on and on**_

"_Why_ are we up at this ungodly hour?!" Daniel moaned from the crook of his elbow, where his face was burrowed thoroughly. Didn't vacation mean one got to sleep in all day if they wanted…or needed.

The other three sitting at the table with him shared knowing glances before returning to perusing their individual menus.

"It's almost two in the afternoon, Jackson." Mitchell said with feigned ignorance. He assumed it was a withering glance Daniel looked up to give him, but it was difficult to tell behind the dark sunglass and pulled down baseball hat.

"Yes – two in the afternoon brings sun and birds and screaming children." Daniel muttered. He wanted to glance around to emphasize his point, but that would only make the situation worse. "All extremely ungodly." He mumbled, dropping his head back to the darkness of his arm.

Jack shot a grin towards Mitchell before looking at their grouchy friend. "Now Daniel…" All he got in response was a grunt. "Why don't you stop whining and try and decide what to eat?"

A moan followed, and Jack and Cam had to fight the urge to laugh. It was obvious Daniel knew they were messing with him. "Food is evil." He added for good measure.

"Should you not decide on something just in case Vala Mal Doran would like to eat it?" Teal'c decided it was his turn to add his thoughts.

Daniel's head came up again, this time to glare at his Jaffa friend. "Traitor." He looked at all of his _supposed_ friends. They were all trying to fight their grins at the mentioning of Vala. He felt his stomach flip. "You all suck."

He wanted to just crawl in a hole and die. It'd be a welcome alternative to having to remember the previous night's events. Well, half remember. The others had so happily filled in the holes left by…_way_ too much tequila. Daniel only remembered bits and pieces of what he'd actually been rambling on about, but he sure as hell remembered _who_ it was about.

Didn't remember those _friends_ of his calling up said person and letting her listen to his drunken praises. Apparently after an uncertain number of shots, the only topic he could carry on about coherently had been her.

"Morning, guys." Sam's loud and cheery voice broke Daniel from his horrendous reliving. Perfect time for them to arrive for lunch. What better way to make his life worse than to have Vala show up and use the previous night's events to her advantage. If he wasn't almost dying, and fearing he was going to throw up some more, he'd so kick the asses of all who'd gotten him into this mess.

"Have a fun time last night?" Sam questioned, taking the seat next to Daniel. He resisted the urge to reach out and smack her leg…hard. Did they all have to tease him? Wasn't what Vala was gonna dish out bad enough? "I hear you drank some tequila…"

Daniel shot out of his seat, nearly knocking over his chair. "'Scuse me." He didn't wait for their reactions. He couldn't handle their joking…couldn't sit and wait to hear her remarks. They were all going to use it against him, and the thought made him nauseous.

Of course rushing away from them in a hurry didn't help with the nausea one bit, and Daniel quickly found himself sitting on the stairs that led to the hotel pool. He rested his elbows on his knees, placing his hands on the back of his head.

So focused on breathing and not puking, Daniel didn't bother to greet the person who came to sit on the steps beside him.

"Oh darling…" Vala sighed with sympathy. She combed her fingers through the hair coming out from the bottom of his hat at the back of his neck. "What have you done to yourself?"

Daniel leaned into the wall at his left, more so to quell the spinning than get away from her touch. "Made an ass of myself."

He could practically feel the little grin she directed his way. "I didn't think it was that bad."

"Yeah, well…" Daniel dropped one of his hands and turned his head to glance at her through his sunglasses. "You were the one _receiving_ all the…stupid drunken praises."

Vala tilted her head and gave him a curious look. "Did you not mean any of it?"

"Yes…no…" He frowned and squeezed his eyes shut. "I'm too hung-over to make sense of that question." Daniel squeezed his eyes shut harder as he felt Vala pulling off his sunglasses. He jerked and moaned as she ambled her way over him, plopping down on the step between his legs.

"But you're awfully adorable…" She whispered and he opened his eyes a fraction to find her face mere inches from his. The little grin was back as she leaned up and took his lips in a small, tender kiss.

"I should tell them to get you to drink tequila more often." Vala added, her voice smug and victorious, as she pulled away.

Daniel opened his eyes slowly, glaring down at her. "You set me up."

She wiggled in place, grinning broadly this time. "How else was I supposed to get you to say all those things?"

Groaning, Daniel pulled his hat down over his eyes and flopped into the wall. "You're unbelievable." He muttered, tilting the hat back up to see her turn and lean her back into his chest.

"But that's why you love me." Vala said knowingly, putting his sunglasses on for effect.

Daniel snaked his arms around her waist and dropped his head to her shoulder. "That was just the alcohol talking." He quipped and received a smack to the leg for it. "Keep that up and I'll throw up on you."

She snorted. "Now that's love." Daniel made a sound of agreement, burying his face into her neck. Vala reached up behind her and went back to combing her fingers through his hair.

After a few moments of comfortable silence, Vala added. "Now when do we tell all of them that we've actually been together for some time now?"

Laughing slightly, Daniel didn't even bother to pull away when he answered. "After last night, those bastards can wait a little while longer."

Adding a laugh of her own, Vala patted the back of Daniel's neck. "And you call me unbelievable."

_**Cause she's everything to me.**_

The first thing they took was his freedom – to move, to speak, to think. All of it stripped away the moment the machine was attached to the back of his neck.

Relief was quick to follow in the things he could no longer have. The device induced a white hot pain the instant it connected to him. It didn't recede, but spread out over his spine and along his limbs. They refused to ease his suffering, preventing him from even dropping into unconsciousness when the pain seemed too much.

Choices? He had none. All he could do was remain strapped in that chair, connected to their central core and feeding them everything they possibly wanted from him.

Memories were all he had. But that's what they wanted. His memories, they said over and over, would lead into the deeper recesses. Help them access the knowledge that he'd never been able to reach himself. Their system was far more advanced than his pathetic human brain. That's how it was able to keep him alive without him doing a thing…

…Except suffer and remember.

At first, he'd struggled. Fought them with every passing moment. Given them his memories, his knowledge, in a jumbled mess of riddles and foreign tongues. But soon they overcame his defenses, using his own memories against him to figure out the answers. Each time he tried to fight, the pain increased and they became faster at cracking his puzzles.

He gave up eventually, letting them take what they wanted. But it didn't stop the pain. There seemed to be no end to the torture of suffering and helplessness. He wanted to scream out, but the metallic leads squeezed tight around his throat prevented it. All hope of rescue was lost – his team would never come for him. They wouldn't know where to look.

He didn't know how long he sat and watched the walls flickering with his memories. Soon it became a churning sea-like haze. They kept going over and over his mind, searching for the right leads to that knowledge. He had no control over what they conjured from one moment to the next. He was just along for the excruciating ride.

Then it happened. He wasn't sure why only then had he been drawn to it. But something about the memory had caught his eye and he searched it out specifically.

_Strolling into the briefing room, his gaze immediately fell on the leather-clad woman who began to advance his way._

For a moment, the pain seemed to dim at remembering such an event. They quickly stopped it, pulling him off to another – one where she wasn't present.

But soon he latched onto another of her.

_Surprise and confusion raced through him as the metallic bracelet slapped onto his wrist._

He could feel the surprise as if he was in the moment once more. Yet instead of the sudden annoyance that had originally followed, relief took over for she seemed to ease his pain every time a memory of her surfaced.

Again they ripped him away, and even through the haze of the returned agony he was able to understand.

He started to find her in his memories, searching out the ones where she was the most prominent. They easily yanked him away at first, but soon he was conjuring more than they were.

"No…" One of them hissed. "You must stop this. He is taking us down the wrong path."

The other seemed frantic. "I'm trying!" He could hear it tapping wildly at keys, trying to take his mind away from him again. "He is regaining control through remembrances of the dark haired one!"

"Impossible!" The first shouted, shoving aside the one at the control panel. "No one has ever overcome the central core. The device restricts all conflicting functions. No memory is strong enough to give back control."

Memories of her came faster, and he watched them become more agitated as soon it seemed only she had filled his mind. Each one he jumped to, or returned to, brought a wave of peace and relief over him. He wasn't so much gaining control as they thought. That was impossible when he was still connected to the core. But he was erasing everything from their reach.

The wall before him filled with her image – little movies on a continuous loop of all they had experienced together. A mix of good and bad, but he couldn't care less. Everything about her burned in his mind was helping. How hard she hit, and how fiercely she kissed. The way she flirted and the way she annoyed. Her eyes, her hair, her voice…

One of them stalked over to him and took his face in a death grip, wrenching at the rod buried into his neck. The white hot tendrils of metal spidered into his spine and brain pulled hard but didn't dislodge.

"Stop this immediately!" It yelled at him, desperation in its eyes. Pain beyond anything he had imagined blazed through him, and he felt his face tighten up under the added strain. It was all he could do to keep her image at the forefront of his mind. He frantically searched for one of his strongest memories…

"_You're killing an innocent person!"_

Blue eyes, flooded with pain-filled tears, glared defiantly into alien yellow.

"Stop this!" It shrieked again, digging its ragged nails into his face.

"_You made the decision to stop running. It's over now. Now it's time to come home."_

Commotion outside drew their attention from him. As the one gripping his face let go and they made for the doorway, he receded back…

"_Daniel…"_ _She sort of laughed out, forcing a smile that didn't last long._

Home, he'd told her. She'd remembered and so had he. He wanted home. The tears returned as his memories turned to his most cherished of her. The commotion from outside burst into the room and he swept his eyes from the wall covered in her little movies to familiar figures barreling in, guns blazing.

He watched as his team easily disposed of those who had done this to him. But he couldn't move, couldn't call out to them. His thoughts slipped away from her and the pain returned. He was still attached to the core – they might've been dead, but the core still lived on.

He pulled memories of her back, flashing them on the wall frantically. If he could've sobbed, he would have as he watched her slowly come through the doorway. She looked ragged and drained, a trail of blood coming around from the back of her neck. She immediately made for him.

She carefully climbed onto the chair he occupied, taking his face in her hands.

"I heard you, Daniel." Vala rasped to him and his eyes flicked for an instant to the angry red scrapes against her neck. "I heard you." She repeated with pride, tears streaming down her cheeks.

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**Well, this is it folks. This fic is FINALLY finished! -phew- I have considered doing a one-shot that follows that last little bit there b/c I feel there should be more to it (but it was long enough as is). I can't tell you when I'll get to that one since I'm busy working on another LONG fic right now (one I think you guys will love), but it should come along eventually. I hope you've enjoyed 'She's Everything'. Reviews, as always, are definitely appreciated. **


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